Water, water everywhere - How to train?

Discussion in 'Labrador Training' started by Willowdays, May 2, 2017.

  1. Willowdays

    Willowdays Registered Users

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    If I turn left out of my house, there is a pond big enough for fish as well as ducks. If I turn right, there is a canal. More than that, though, wherever I go, there is water.

    My older dog, a Boxer-X, splashed about in shallow water when he was very young, but now, in his adulthood, he is disinterested in water. My little puppy Willow, though, as a Friese Stabij, is likely to think that he is a waterdog, on the same level as I've seen Labradors beautifully enjoying all water.

    So I'm looking for guidance about how to deal with this. I have two hopes:

    1. Because it is inevitable that he will end up in water, and maybe some water will not be that easy to get out of again, I really want him to be a confident and strong swimmer. But....

    2. I don't want him deciding for himself which waters he launches himself into. Some water may have plant or human debris underneath, which could be a dangerous problem to him.

    Oh, it will be wonderful if he grows up so into me and so obedient that he never thinks of leaving my side unless I give him a cue that he may do something else. But until that fantasy day appears, does anyone have any good ideas about how to encourage him to be confident in water ... while at the same time discouraging him about entering water without my permission?

    At the moment he is only 13 weeks old, so this is kind of for the future maybe - or maybe not ... I went to collect him when he was 8 weeks old, and his sister had already managed to escape to go swimming in the breeders' pond....
     
  2. Ski-Patroller

    Ski-Patroller Cooper, Terminally Cute

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    1. I think it will happen automatically if you give him a chance to start in shallow water and then go deeper as he gets more confident. Of course he may not like swimming, like your Boxer X not all all dogs like water.

    2. Good luck with that, if he not on lead, and not under your immediate voice command. I suppose you could train him, by calling him back and rewarding him for not going in. We have never tried to limit our Labs going into water unless we thought it was a dangerous situation. In that case we would keep them on lead, or close by and under control.
     
  3. Joy

    Joy Registered Users

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    As an adult I've always lived close to the sea or river or both. Molly is a strictly wading only girl but my previous three dogs (Lab, cocker and springer) all swam regularly with no problems.
    I think I'd keep your pup on lead if you weren't sure the water was safe or it was too steep for him to climb out, but I think as they grow up they seem to learn what they can manage.
    I'm sure some people could train a 'go swim' cue -but not me!
     
  4. JulieT

    JulieT Registered Users

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    For a dog that is very keen on water, it's easy to treat a 'release cue' to water by just rewarding them for following your cue by access to the water. But they need to be released from something. So the realistic thing is for your stop, recall, heel etc to work around water.

    Nope. :) It doesn't really work like that. Well, I suppose you could train IYC (it's your choice - a default leave it) to include water but to be honest I think it would be easier to train him to be engaged with you until you say 'go free'. In fact, much easier I think. :)
     
  5. Willowdays

    Willowdays Registered Users

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    Thank you for your replies. I'm sorry if it seemed like I had disappeared after starting this thread - but my computer stopped working! That was bad timing with a young puppy to look after;
     
  6. Willowdays

    Willowdays Registered Users

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    ^ I was going to say that I had now temporarily fixed my computer - but then it failed again, when I was in mid-sentence; took ages to reboot; I tried to post again; it failed again .. hopefully this is third time lucky!

    Anyway, yes, that makes sense, to train around water, and for the dog to maintain focus on me. Or at least (at our current puppy stage) to maintain focus on the cheese!

    Thanks. :)
     

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