Dog Boating?

capt_jack

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Jul 10, 2007
180
GA
Boat Info
185 Sport
Engines
4.3 Merc
So im wondering how it would be if I brought the dog on the boat. Any of you guys bring your dogs on the boat? Im just worried about it getting all scratched up from his nails. Let me know your guys input.
 
get the nails clipped. Better yet, use a dremel tool to take them down. no sharp edges and i haven't found a single dog related scratch. Hair? Yes. Scratches? No.
 
We have a yellow lab and she has only missed a few trips in her 2 yrs so far. Like RT 240SD said....no scratches just lots of hair. You may want to invest in a dog life jacket though...even though my dog swims great, you never know when they may jump in. If you can stand in the water, good luck getting a large dog in the boat. The jacket has a handle on the back, so you can just pluck them right out and pull them in. I picked one up at Petsmart...about $20
 
We have two yorkies who are getting old, they go everywhere with us, one of the reasons we purchased the 280 with air. No scratches and I second that what 180sport said regarding the life jacket, a good investment for doggies who love the water.
 
Yes on the dremel, we cut his nails and then grind them and it works great. Lots on hair on the boat but hey, he, Waldo, is part of the family. We have a dog boat!

Waldo wears a life jacket whenever we are underway, he does not swim well. He loves being with us and boating.

He can be a barker when left alone so this year we got him a bark collar. It is NOT a shock but instead sprays citronella when he barks. Works like a charm, he knows as soon as we put it on him. Sure, hate to do it but hate more if he is bothering the neighbors if we are out to dinner or such.

We can't imagine not having him with us, try it.
 
Salty Dog,

I bring my lab to the office and she barks at the delivery guys all the time....I have considered the collar with the lemon/citronella, but wondered of it worked. I may give it try. I have a spray bottle with water and that works, but only if I am fast enough and she is close by. Sorry to stray off the topic....now back to dog boating :thumbsup:
 
I will have to try the dremel trick. I have never taken the two dogs out on the water. I think the little one might get scared and the husky doesn't like water unless he can see the bottom. One of these days i will take them out for a trial run where I don't care if I have to come right back in!! I can see it now, take a group of friends out, get 20min out, and one of the dogs has a mental break down.

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This photo is before cleaning. It looks like a different boat now!!!
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Graham
 
A boat is not really a boat unless it has a dog on it – they seem to go together so well.

This July 4th we were sleeping 5 people only to awake at around 1:00 AM with the AC not working. Checked the strainer for jelly fish and this wasn’t the trouble. Then took apart the bow area to access the unit only the find the filters and coil mostly covered in Golden fir – go figure! We were able to get the unit back online in about one hour. Yes, we cut and file the nails to round stubs, vacuum every day, take carpet covers home for machine washing and wouldn’t think of not taking the dog on each and every trip.
 

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We always take our chocolate lab with us no matter on the boat or camping. We also have the nails ground and it works great. I,ll have to figure out how to put pictures on. We also use a doggy life jacket. Its alot easier to pull out a 100lb wet dog when there is a handle on his back.
 
Capt_jack.....we've got a 90 lb lab & a 60lb collie mix that's never been boating & is also nuts. Just now getting the collie/nuts one used to the lake & she's doing very well. The labs' all over it.
Only thing I would advise (next to the life jackets) is our dogs get to playing around & like to take the "shortcut" from the rear seat over the stern to get to the swim platform. Bought a couple of inexpensive rubber mats at Lowes & throw them over the stern to keep any scratches at bay. Scott



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We have a black lab mix that isnt real fond of water. The only way he likes it is from the beach. He'll play in 12" of surf all day. Wont go in over his shoulders. He doesnt like the boat at all. We also use the life jacket as a handle to get him in and out of the boat. As soon as he's on, he runs down to the aft cabin and stays there most of the day. He will come up on deck and look around for a while then return to his hide out. We havent forced him in the water yet. Not sure if we could get him out.

Our biggest problem with cruising with him is getting him to shore for the necesities. We have to find a dock and walk him, so we dont do too many overniters with him.

A couple of weeks ago, we took a rather long day cruise so we sedated him. Seemed to help a little. He always seems to be in a state of panic when on the boat. He especially does not like rough water.

One of his braver moments

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Rock Hall said:
We have a black lab mix that isnt real fond of water. The only way he likes it is from the beach. He'll play in 12" of surf all day. .......

That sounds like our black Choow Chow! She absolutely loves being at the edge of the water, but hates loosing her footing. She can swim, but with all that fur w get worried. She does go with us on the boat all the time and loves hanging out. Ducks, geese, or any livestock or game on shore drive her bonkers! She's fun to have around, though, and a perfect boating dog. She hardly evr barks and is very good with other people in a raft-up. At night she just sleeps in the cockpit - no problem. She does shed and also brings a lot of dirt onto the boat from going ashore for her 'business'. That's why I just installed a raw water washdown pump (which still has to get wired). We are hoping to be able to give her a good rinse on the swim step before she gets into the cockpit. We;ve learned to accept her shaking off all the water all over everything, but it's the mud we're trying to 'contain'. Of course, bringing the dog with us does require additional cleaning effort after each outing. But so what. She's part of our family! When on the hook we lay a rubber map on the swim step so that it's not so slippery. With the mat down she will often hang out on the swim step to watch us and whatever else goes on around us.

As for getting her ashore, we did purchase a rollup inflatable and a little electric trolling motor. It works like a charm! And our dog very quickly adapted to it! Sometimes, when on the hook with the inflatable tied to our stern she'll jump into it all on her own for one of 2 reasons. She either just lays down in it to sleep or she sits up looking at us, telling us it's time to take her to shore. Of course, we usually oblige. :smt101

As to her nails, our back yard consists of mostly flagstone patio and concrete side yard. The heavily landscaped planters are off-limits to the dog (electric wire), except for roughly 30 sf of grassy area (her playground). So her nails are ground down naturally. We never have had to trim them and they do not leave any marks on the boat.
 

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