Any advice for safety of the dog? She's 6 months old and we've had her 2 months. She's not fantastic on her recall yet so she's almost always leashed even in the backyard. We're taking her up to a lake house this weekend. Is it wise to keep her on a leash as she goes into the water or let her off? Should I just over treat and try to keep her shadowing me while there? How did you introduce your puppy to the water?
Edit -- Thanks for all the advice everyone. There were a lot more children at the lake than we anticipated and so Pepper wasn't able to check out the beach. We felt it was better if we took her on a day that had less distraction. But she did seem to really enjoy her first camping experience! PictureAnother picture
@titillating My cattle dog puppy was kind of afraid of the water at first. I wouldn't worry too much about not having a leash long enough or anything like that.
I had a fetching toy that I threw into the water just a few feet. and she would wade in and snatch it up. I eventually built up the distance I threw it, and she built up the distance she would retrieve it too.
Overall, for me and my dog, it was a very similar experience to teaching her to fetch. She still doesn't just hang out in the water, unless there are a lot of people swimming around to draw her attention.
TL;DR: don't worry to much about the leash, even a 6' one should be fine for your puppies first time in water.
@titillating You could get a retractable leash. That way she had room to run and you still have control over where she goes. Maybe even a life jacket if you want to make that investment.
@titillating Meh. As long as you are paying attention to your dog why not use them? I don't have one because I just don't really need it, but I do believe they can be convenient.
@titillating See the thing about weight ratings is that its not rated for the weight of the dog but of force. You can hang a 110lbs weight off the end and it will hold just fine. Raise that weight 6 inches and drop it, it will snap. So just because your dog weighs 30lbs doesnt mean she cant apply 110lbs of force.
As far as training the dog for water. If you want to leash her that means your getting wet too.
@titillating I took mine to the lake the first time and he wanted nothing to do with the water so I jumped in a swam a little ways out. He hated that even more so he swam out to me. It took several more times to get him comfortable and I don't believe ACDs are made to swim because their snout barely clears the water. I got Argos a vest and now his nose is well out of the water and he loves swimming.
@titillating The first time I brought my dog to the lake she was a little weird about it because the waves were pretty big that day (we live by Lake Michigan). When we came back the next time to the beach she ran right to the water and swam around in it. She loves the water now but she isn't a big fan of fetching in the water. She's a strong swimmer but make sure yours is doing okay if the water is choppy!
