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Anybody Dock Dive?

JamieHalverson

Well-Known Member
I might be crazy, but just found out Leerburg has http://www.thedogtank.com/... yep, we are going today and Steve is going to help teach Lillie how to swim (fingers crossed) and maybe even dock dive, but I won't hold my breath! Whatever happens, should be fun!

Lillie's agility class got cancelled due to the heat and humidity; what a great excuse to use the time to get her in the pool instead!

Anybody dock dive with these big dogs? Any tips or tricks of the trade?

Lillie's not real prey driven, so I'm not sure about the use of a toy and she's definitely NOT a retriever, lol. BUT, she seems willing to try anything!
 

Smokeycat

Well-Known Member
I would love to try dock diving, Jiggers not Kryten, but it isn't available around here. Kryten sinks like a stone so no water sports for him. Jiggers however definitely fits the water loving nature of his breeds.

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JamieHalverson

Well-Known Member
Wellllll, it wasn't quite dock diving so much as Lillie being carried out by her new friend Steve and forced to enjoy swimming, lol. She didn't want anything to do with the water, so after a little cajoling he carried her out a little bit and she swam back to me and got lots of praise and treats, he kept increasing the distance each time until she was on the far end and swimming all the way back. There was a little panic at first, she tried to drink the water while swimming, shook her head while swimming when water got in her ears, etc. it was not pretty, lol!

By the end though, she gained a lot of confidence, kept her mouth shut tight and her nose up, and swam with nice strong strokes. she got in the water on her own once for a toy and then barked in excitement over the toys in the pool. She still wasn't 100% and by no means jumping off, but next time we will try it without the life vest. Maybe by the end of the 2nd session or by the 3rd she'll be jumping in!

Oh, we called her the pontoon of dogs because on approaching the ramp she'd give one last kick with her back feet and just glide into the ramp!

August 3, 2016(1) - YouTube
 

JamieHalverson

Well-Known Member
Really jealous of all the dog stuff you get to do haha.

I'd say those opportunities and the choice of schools for my kiddo to attend are the upsides of living in an urban/suburban area. Otherwise I'd be out in the country on some acreage!
 

dpenning

Well-Known Member
I'd say those opportunities and the choice of schools for my kiddo to attend are the upsides of living in an urban/suburban area. Otherwise I'd be out in the country on some acreage!

That is a great facility! Is it designed to be dog specific?


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JamieHalverson

Well-Known Member
That is a great facility! Is it designed to be dog specific?


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Yep, it's at Leerburg's new facility in Menomonie, WI. It is specifically for dock diving, fully fenced in, you can come by appointment during the week and they have it open on weekends all day for open swim time. Steve is there to help you and your dog at whatever level they are at.

They have a really nice facility; I couldn't stop looking at all the stuff they have in their retail space, it's the only place I've seen working dog equipment other than online. I wanted everything!

They are having some competitions in August and Sept there. They have some great pictures on their Facebook page of all kinds of dogs dock diving, I didn't even know it was there until I saw a dane and a doberman we do barn hunt with dock diving on FB!
 

dpenning

Well-Known Member
That is very cool! We may have to take a vacation to one of those events one day. How fun would that be and we are always looking for reasons to go north on those months. :)


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JamieHalverson

Well-Known Member
So awesome!!!! Go Lillie! She is such a good girl

She has been such a fun girl! I'm really hoping to see all those muscles used to launch herself off the dock, but we shall see!

It was funny because for a while, she kept trying to swim to the edge like she thought she'd make a break for it, lol. I was very surprised at how strong she was even in the water, she actually pulled Steve while swimming when he grabbed her life vest to redirect her path.
 

QY10

Well-Known Member
Awe, yay! Lillie is awesome. I would love to dock dive with Angus, he is a total water dog... we swim at the creek almost daily. Of course though, I have to take his knee into consideration. Maybe one day though! I do dock dive with Thalia. She's really good at it for a dog who doesn't love water, lol. Even at the creek, she hardly swims unless she is following Angus around.
 

JamieHalverson

Well-Known Member
Awe, yay! Lillie is awesome. I would love to dock dive with Angus, he is a total water dog... we swim at the creek almost daily. Of course though, I have to take his knee into consideration. Maybe one day though! I do dock dive with Thalia. She's really good at it for a dog who doesn't love water, lol. Even at the creek, she hardly swims unless she is following Angus around.

Oh, good to know!!! I'm hoping that since she was pretty excited about some of the toys in the water that we would eventually get to jumping in; glad to know there's hope! I wish Yogi didn't hate the water so much or I'd give him a try...
 

QY10

Well-Known Member
Oh, good to know!!! I'm hoping that since she was pretty excited about some of the toys in the water that we would eventually get to jumping in; glad to know there's hope! I wish Yogi didn't hate the water so much or I'd give him a try...
Before dock diving, Thalia HATED water. She would dip her paws in the water, but would be very reluctant to actually swim. We started slowly and by the end of her first season, she was jumping between 10-12 feet. This season, she remembered instantly that she enjoyed dock diving with me and her firsts jumps were 12-13 ft.

After she was comfortable in the pool and jumping off the ramp, we spent a lot time with her just chasing me off the dock. I would jump in and she would follow. Eventually she started going off on her own.



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JamieHalverson

Well-Known Member
Before dock diving, Thalia HATED water. She would dip her paws in the water, but would be very reluctant to actually swim. We started slowly and by the end of her first season, she was jumping between 10-12 feet. This season, she remembered instantly that she enjoyed dock diving with me and her firsts jumps were 12-13 ft.

After she was comfortable in the pool and jumping off the ramp, we spent a lot time with her just chasing me off the dock. I would jump in and she would follow. Eventually she started going off on her own.



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That is awesome! Maybe after I get Lillie jumping in I'll try Yogi; with her there and in the water, we might be able to get him in. I think it's good to push past fears a bit, builds a lot of confidence when they do something they didn't want to and end up liking it!
 

DennasMom

Well-Known Member
Denna will go in any body of water after her "Aqua Kong" toy...
KONG Aqua - KONG

She spent about 3 hours swimming after it last week in the Columbia River... then spent the next 3 days napping in recovery around the campground. :)

I do keep it on a long line, so I can drag it in if she ever does let go - and also so I can drag HER in, if she decides to start swimming across the river into the barge traffic lanes (she LOVES to swim).