JStrider

so my family got a beagle puppy, she is about 5 months old. We have a pool in our back yard, and want her to come swim with us. But she gets very nervous and skittish when we try to bring her in with us, and when we do put her in she obviously isn't enjoying it.

I was wondering how we could get her to like the pool and come swim with us.

I was thinking try to get her to come onto the first step for a treat or something and gradually try to coax her out into the pool with treats.

anyone have any other suggestions?

thanks

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Willravel

I eagerly await an answer to this one, too.

jorgelito

Whoa!! Do not try and force the dog to "like" something they do not. Especially water. Some dogs are natural water lovers, others are not. You might want to read up on beagles to see if they are water dogs or not. It could be the water hurts their floppy ears and causes problems (it's not good to get water in dogs ears, especially the big floppy sensitive kinds).

If your dog wants to swim with you, she will. In time. On her own. It might be too late since she already has a negatove association from you forcing her into the water. But she may come around in time.

The best way is for everyone to be in the water having fun and she will naturally want to be where you are. Keep in mind, she may be scared of all the splashing and noise in the pool. You could also put her favorite toys near the pool and other familiar items. You can also pet her while you are in the pool and she is outside of it so as to associate the pool positively to her. Treats could work too.

Edit - (one more) Remember, you want to rebuild the trust and undo any damage you may have caused. Another thing to try is introducing her to the pool on a really hot day and being calm and quiet. The serene environment you establish can help her to relax and might induce her to want to check out the nice, calm, refreshing, cool water that just happens to have her favorite person whom she trusts and wants to hang out with.

amonkie

When we got our puppies, the first thing we ALWAYS did was throw them in the pool, and show them how to get to the steps, so they can get out. As soon as the dogs knew they could get out if they wanted to, they LOVE the pool.

We've also tried getting a human on a raft, and putting the dog on the lap and letting them float around and lick from the pool so they can gradually get to their comfort level.

last option, start small. Get a plastic pool fill it with about 1/4" of water or however high your step is, and she can work on the getting in/out. Having floating things tio get her attention. When she is comfortable with the smaller pool, upgrade her to the larger one.

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shakran

I'm with jorg. The dog doesn't want to go in the pool. Don't make the dog go in the pool. There are things you don't like to do too. Should we force you to do them because we selfishly want to sit there watching you do them? It's not going to hurt you to have the dog sitting on the deck watching you swim - let the dog decide if he wants to swim.

You might think we're coming on a bit strong, but people have got to realize that dogs are not dolls. They have their own personalities, their own likes and dislikes, and unlike a doll, they will not be whatever you want them to be. \

Beagles do not like to swim. They're OK standing in water, but swimming is generally right out. If you wanted a dog that would swim with you, you should have gotten a retriever.

Willravel

For me it's a safety issue. The area I live in is subject to flooding, and if something were to ever happen, I need Jack the wonderbeagle to be able to swim to safety. Back in the early 90s, we had 4' of water in our front yard.

JStrider

I've never forced her into the pool, my brother did once, and we told him not to again, because since she didn't like it, it would only make it harder to get her to like it.

I think I'll try to lure her onto the first step with a treat one day when I'm in the pool by myself, see if I cant get her to come in that much. and maybe go from there.

We didnt get a dog specifically to have it swim with us, but if we can get her to thats just even better.

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jorgelito

Will, that's a very good point and i share the same concerns. I have two thoughts about this:

1. You can a doggie life jacket (and use it not just for emergencies but also if you want to take your doggie out on a boat etc.

2. In an emergency, a dog's instinct may just convince them to swim.

JR, you can use my suggestions too because they operate on the same mechanisms as other inducements of behavior.

EX: When giving the dog a bath or clipping nails using positive association by using praise, treats etc.

So when your beagle approaches the water even one step, give her praise and encouragement. Baby steps. Also, having her favorite items (including you) near or in the water will help associate the water as a "good thing". Just be patient and reasonable.

Glory's Sun

If it's an emergency then the dog will know what to do.

As far as getting him to enjoy swimming with you, if he doesn't want to do it, he's not going to enjoy it no matter what you try. Basically any tactic you employ to get him into the pool and swimming will be translated into a command.

If you want a dog to swim with you, go buy a Lab.

Let your dog have his personality.

thingstodo

Four great points and I have to agree 100% with each one.

I remember a dog a friend had many years ago that hated the water. One day there was a situation where he was in a boat and fell out. That dog swam right to shore like he'd been doing it his whole life!!

Animals are just like people in that some naturally like to do some things and others naturally like to do other things.

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eribrav

We have a golden retriever that loves the water. She starts nosing around semi-frozen puddles in the woods in the spring, seeing if she can break the ice on top and go for a little paddle around!

But it took a little coaxing as a puppy to get her in the first time. She kept running up to the waters edge, intrigued but scared. Even when I stood about 10 feet from shore she wouldn't come in. The solution for us was for me to carry her in, gently put her down and let her swim to my wife on shore. We did that about twice and she's loved the water ever since.

Having said that, retrievers have an intrinsic affinity for the water; some just need a little push to get started. I would NOT use that approach with a beagle, which is just as likely to hate the water no matter what you do. You're going to have to let the beagle try it out on his own, and accept whatever he decides about being in water.

Glory's Sun

Another quick note, being that the pup is only 5 months old, it's still building trust with the family. Until the pup has full trust it won't try something.

I'm of the inclination that the Beagle just isn't interested in swimming, but that doesn't mean you can't find other activities that you can both enjoy.

Sultana

Beagles are runners, barkers, pee-ers, diggers, and chasers. They are not swimmers! They were bred for land-hunting, you know? Foxhunts and all.

However, I do think it's a great idea to show dogs around the pool, especially where the steps are. It was a very sad day when my sister-in-law's beloved dog fell into the pool and drowned.

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greytone

We had beagles when I was growing up and now I have two greyhounds. I have never known a hound to choose to go in the water. But they tend to swim like many other animals when they are forced too. If you are worried, they make ramps to hang over the edge of the pool that helps dogs climb out. That might help if the pup fell in (a very unlikely occurance).

On the other hand, we could not keep my sister's golden out of my fishpond when she visited.

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tenniels

I find like humans, animals each have their own likes and dislikes. Two of my families dogs (Carter and Spencer) love riding in the car, but our littlest Lily practically panics and it stresses her out. We avoid taking her in the car as much as possible as not to put her through that stress. It's funny because they're all shih tzu's, so you think they'd be more alike, but nope, each has their own distinct personality and likes and dislikes. BTW, they are not the shih tzu's with the long ugly hair to the ground, I think that is hideous! They are just too adorable *sighs* They are our families dogs and live at my mum's place, but I still consider them mine, if that makes sense. Anyways, off topic. I say if your dog doesn't like it, don't make her do it.

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Acetylene

My last dog hated water. My current dog loves it. Go figure!

Don't worry about flooding. All dogs can swim and practise doesn't make much of a difference as long as your dog is fit and strong.

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lankrypt0

As everyone in here has said, never force your puppy to do something they dont want to do. With that said, while I am not dog training expert, we have gotten our dog to do pretty much everything with positive reinfocement.

For example she used to HATE taking baths/showers, and would fight us to not do it (never biting or anything, just making us hunt her down and carry her in =(. Anyway, we got a water bottle and took her outside and played with her a bit, when she needed a drink, we would cup our hands and put some water in it so she could drink. When she was finishing up, we would have her sit and tell her she was a good girl while we would pet her with wet hands. Slowly it got to the point where we were pouring water on her from the bottle while she sat and we would pet and priase her.

Now, while its not her favorite thing in the world, we dont have to hunt her down to take a shower anymore. =)

StanT

My dogs learned to like water by hanging out with their friends. Nothing like another dog romping and swimming to make it look like fun. Of course, I have a Newfie and a Golden, getting them to swim wasn't exactly a stretch.

Now, if anyone has any suggestions for getting a Newfie out of the water ...

pocon1

nothing to say

cadre

My parents currently have two terriers, one of which used to be mine when I lived there. The first terrier we got hates water, we tried everything to coax her in and now she ends up being thrown in a lot so all hopes of her being a water dog are out.

Now, my dog on the other hand, while not a water dog, doesn't hate the water. He gets into the pool almost daily and sits on the steps but he doesn't swim much. He's jumped in on his own on a few occasions though and if we have one of the floating chairs out he'll jump on it and float around. For cairn terriers even that much is unusual but I think that the positive reinforcement and lots of treats helped a lot.

And yes, we also throw all of our animals in the pool at least once so that they learn how to get out. We have a cover on the pool most of the time and we've had many cats and dogs, even my terrier, who when they got to our house, could walk across the cover without sinking but eventually they grow up.

I recommend finding your puppy's favorite treat and using it to reward her.

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Sweetpea

I was always under the impression that they would if they wanted to. I've had a dog that loves to swim and another that Hated it no matter how we coaxed, I chaulk it up to breeding and personality.

sweetpea

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james t kirk

When I was a teenager, we had a poodle. The poodle DESPISED the water, but as kids of course, you want your dog to go in the lake, so, we'd try to lead her into the water and she would put the brakes on and you'd give up trying to literally drag the dog into the lake.

Then we'd try carrying her into the lake and letting her go. She could swim no problem, but immediately headed for shore. (We wanted her to swim with us.)

Only once when it was about 40 C outside did she decide to wade into the lake that that was only up to her belly.

We also had a cat and one time it was rolling around on the concrete deck of the swimming pool and rolled right in. Stupid cat. When it came up, it immediately swam to the stairs in the pool and climbed out. Smart cat.

Martian

All dogs swim instinctively. While a dog can drown, it's a rare event and will generally only happen if the dog can't find his or her way out of the water and eventually succumbs to exhaustion.

That said, beagles aren't noted for being strong swimmers. I'm sure you've noticed your beagle (being naturally short-statured) has stubby little legs. They don't work very well in the water. There is the odd beagle that will be a swimmer (as has been noted, every dog has it's own personality), but they're not common.

Sure, all you need is someone who can't swim. The dog rescues the person and they both come out of the water.

Seriously, dude, it's a Newf. I'm betting that dog doesn't do anything she doesn't want to do.

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amonkie

My dog went swimming for the first time today - we'd explored and walked in creeks before, but he was hesitant about going much more than his knee height in.

The trick was a fellow puppy having a blast and taking his ball, and a gentle shove to get him moving in the direction of the ball. Never looked back, hehe. I've now got a swimming lover on my hands.

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