Boating holidays are as much fun for our furry friends as they are for us – however, there are a few considerations that can make boating with your dog a safe and enjoyable experience.
Invest in a lifejacket
Lifejackets save lives for both humans and animals. Investing in suitable life jackets for you and your dog it vital.
Not all dogs are swimmers, and some dogs just don't swim well. If your dog isn't a swimmer, then make sure that the lifejacket you purchase is extra buoyant. If your dog is active, then choose a flexible jacket.
The life jacket should fit correctly so it doesn't impede your dog's movement. It should have a well-stitched handle and good under-tummy support – there should be no way for your dog to wriggle or slip out of the jacket.
Practicing with your dog
You'll need to practice wearing a life jacket with your dog. Firstly, get used to putting the jacket on your dog away from the water. When your dog appears to be comfortable wearing the jacket, practice some 'scoop drills' on dry land.
Lift your dog a few inches off the ground using the life jacket handle, replace dog on ground and then reward your dog. Do this a few times. Practicing should help prevent any nasty shock or bad reaction if your dog falls into the water and needs to be scooped out of the canal.
Dogs that are heavy on land are much heavier in the water – especially when you're trying to pull them up onto your boat or dry land. Make sure that you can manage the weight. If not, consider if they will be safer locked inside the boat while cruising. You know your dog best, whether they will sit and watch the world go by or whether they are a bit more excitable.
Locks are one place where you don't want any distractions. If something's going to go wrong at a lock, it goes wrong fast. It can be tempting to let your dog loose lock side while you work your boat through so that they can do what they need to do – but it’s not worth the risk.
If you’re working a lock single-handed, you can't be picking up after your dog at the same time or keeping an eye on what they are doing. Dogs have been known to topple off the lock edge into the lock or slip while crossing a balance beam.
Very young dogs and old dogs are more prone to mishaps. Falling into a lock or above the head gates while the paddles are open could be catastrophic. Your dog could get crushed between the boat and lock wall, sucked through a ground paddle sluice or come into even contact with the boat propeller. It only needs to happen once.
Our advice is to keep all dogs on a lead or under very close control around locks, especially if a boat is passing through.
We would also ask that you try and prevent your dog from doing their business lockside. It’s not pleasant and can also be a health hazard.
Waterside walks
Walking along the towpath, a harness is much safer for your dog than just a lead and collar. Ideally, your walking harness will have good strong stitching, under-tummy support and a handle similar like your dog’s life jacket. You can really hurt a dog by hauling them out of the water by their collar.
If the towpath is busy with people and cyclists, keep your dog under close control. We ask everyone using the towpath to share the space so that we can all enjoy it. And it goes without saying, please pick up after your dog.
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