I have allways wanted a dog and i might get a golden retriever.How would I introduce her/him to the water? By the time I get him/her she would be 1year and 6 months.




4 Responses to “How do you get your golden retriever to get used to swiming in water?”

  1. Danny What

    Usually the dog will either want to swim or not by themselves. You can try and have the dog on a leash and walk into the water and see what happens.
    Dogs are unpredictable when it comes to water. My pitbull/black lab mix hates baths with all of her heart. She’ll yelp, cry, and bark the entire time.
    When I took her to Hermosa Dog Beach here in California she ran into the water by herself. She started flipping out when she realized she couldn’t touch the ground so I gave her a few seconds to swim and she started doing it by the tides kept pushing her back farther and farther so I had to go in and get her.

  2. hey girl hey

    I would suggest getting a lab. They tend to like the water more but if your set on a golden, throw a toy in the water or just plop him in. He might like it and be patient and give lots of treats.

  3. Legman

    Your dog will love any activity that involves you. Take him to water and play with him a lot. Bring a toy, Tennis ball, etc. Just splash around with him. They are called retrievers for a reason. They love fetching, retrieving and water. A yellow lab is the same way.

  4. Ama

    I don’t have a Golden Retriever, but I do have a dog that loves water.

    My suggestion would be to get a kiddie pool(one of the hard plastic ones).

    This is what I got for my dog when I was introducing her to water. She loved snow when it was winter time so I had no doubt that she would love water and swimming too. Fill the pool half up with water and splash around in it, make it seem like it’s really fun. You may need to get into the pool and splash around a bit, try and coax your dog into it that way. Let her sniff it, touch it, whatever. Praise her when she does. Bring out one of her favorite toys and toss it inside the water. Make it a game of fetch. It may take awhile for her to feel comfortable enough to get in the water but make it positive when she does.

    When I first introduced my dog to water, by the kiddie pool, it took almost twenty minutes to coax her in. She started by getting her front paws in first, then she worked her way to jumping in really quick and then jumping out just as quickly, then she started getting in it and standing there for a few moments, then she started splashing. Now she LOVES water and the kiddie pool. As soon as you are comfortable with your dog coming when called, and she is comfortable with water, take her to a low current river or a lake. There are safety swimming vests you can get for dogs, if you want extra security, get her that. I’m sure it won’t be needed though as some dogs are natural swimmers.

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