Big Dog - Dogs on Board

[hodo]

While spending a long weekend at Blake Island, a friend of mind commented that a fellow with a larger dog sure had it trained well. He told me this boat that was tied out to the pilings had a dog that was trained to lift his leg and discharge over the side. wanting to see this, and drink some of his beer, I joined him on his boat to watch. Sure enogh, the dog walked along the stbd side a few steps , did his thing over the side, and then lay down.I was amazed. I was thinking, I should have gotten a male,not a female dog. Well, several beers later, the dog got up walked around the bow, and then again relieved himself over the side. long story shortened, when he came back toward the bow, it was apparent that he always lifted the same leg. This time it was on the side of the cabin!!. Guess I'll stay with the female Shitzu. she uses a pad, and Usually waits till she gets ashore.
Harold

 

[Rocinante33]

Well, several beers later, the dog got up walked around the bow, and then again relieved himself over the side. long story shortened, when he came back toward the bow, it was apparent that he always lifted the same leg. This time it was on the side of the cabin!!.
Harold

It is an obvious problem. That dog can't hold his Beer! More training required.

 

[Dan Morehouse]

Marcus,
Just found this thread & had to weigh in. I like the idea of a Newfoundland on a boat automatically. But then I think about the Newfie I used to own...all 180 pounds of him. I think about how he wasn't as sure footed as a dog half his size, and that he outweighed me and half the people who sailed with me. A well-trained dog who could be moved around to suit the point of sail would be great regardless of size, but space (or lack thereof) on a boat is the great equalizer...as well as the need to keep one's balance while the boat jumps around like a flea on a...dog!
But if you had to go though the rigamarole of training a large dog to function on a small boat, and answering the problems of getting him around/aboard/back aboard/etc., I applaud your selection of a Newfoundland. At least anyone overboard from your vessel would appreciate a dog whose first instinct is to go to the aid of people in the water!

Dan Morehouse
1981 E-38 "Next Exit"

P.S. if you actually take your dog out on the boat, pictures are in order. A good picture of a Newfoundland on a sailboat would belong on calendar art for both dog and sailboat enthusiasts.

 

[Dan Morehouse]

Got this pic of my half grown Newfie on the foredeck of our little boat framed for Christmas, and remembered this thread. Now I need to get a shot of him on the Ericson. He doesn't go sailing though. Just comes along when we're going to be motoring close to shore, since I do not have a way to get him back aboard yet. We motored to a place on our lake where there are some rocks large enough to pull up next to; I got him to hop off on a boulder for some shore exploration, which he liked. Unfortunately, when I went to load him back aboard, he lost his resolve right after getting his front paws on the side deck. His back feet were still on the boulder, and I wasn't able to hold the boat next to the rock. Boat moved away; dog dropped into five feet of water between boat & rock, going completely under. He came up sputtering and swam ashore, where he stayed for half an hour before I could convince him it was safe to reboard the boat!

View attachment 10293

Dan Morehouse
1981 E-38 "Next Exit"

 

[our38]

E38 (1980) sailing with big dogs

I've read some posts where a few of you have big dogs that sail with you. We have a 1 1/2 year old German Shepherd that has never been on a boat. We rescued him from a German Shepherd Rescue organization when he was 1-years old, and he's turning out to be a very good dog. My question is, how do you get that big dog down below? Do you carry them up and down the stairs each time, do you let them jump, or what? We are new to sailing, just purchased this 1980 E38, and I'm trying to figure things out. One of the upgrades we're thinking of is to install lifeline webbing when I replace the lifelines in about three weeks. Do their nails damage the gel coat?

 

[toddster]

My young dog scampers up and down the ladder like it's nothing. The old dog sits there and whines until I pick her up and heave her in the direction she wants to go. Both of them loathe the boat.

 

[Lucky Dog]

http://www.ericsonyachts.org/infoexchange/showthread.php?5198-Big-Dog-Dogs-on-Board

 

[jhkm12345]

big dog... ha...

here's our 170lb neapolitan mastiff on our e29!

cumbersome does not even begin to describe the situation...

 

[our38]

Very impressive

If you can do it with a 170 lb Mastiff on an E29, I should be able to get our 80 lb German Shepherd on our E38. I'll let you know how it goes once we get it out of the boat yard AND get some new life lines with webbing.

Thanks for the pics.

 

[mherrcat]

Sounds like a case of, "You either run with the big dogs or sleep on the porch." Or in this case, the dock...

 

[Vagabond39]

Sounds like a case of, "You either run with the big dogs or sleep on the porch." Or in this case, the dock...

"If you sleep with dogs you'll wake up with fleas">
Ben Franklin ( Poor Richards Almanack)

 

[chtaylor]

Sorry to revive an old thread, but I just saw it. Do any of you dog owners have advice on how to get a dog to WANT to get on the boat. We have a 3 yr. old lab who appears deathly afraid of the boat.

When he was smaller, I could lift him onto the boat, but then he would promptly jump off. He's bigger now (73 lbs.) and I threw my back out the last time I tried to put him onboard against his will. He has not had any bad experiences on the boat.

We have tried to lure him onboard with food, he just stands on the dock slobbering at the food, but he won't get onboard to get it.

Thanks,

Charles

 

[Vagabond39]

age old trick

Sorry to revive an old thread, but I just saw it. Do any of you dog owners have advice on how to get a dog to WANT to get on the boat. We have a 3 yr. old lab who appears deathly afraid of the boat.

When he was smaller, I could lift him onto the boat, but then he would promptly jump off. He's bigger now (73 lbs.) and I threw my back out the last time I tried to put him onboard against his will. He has not had any bad experiences on the boat.

We have tried to lure him onboard with food, he just stands on the dock slobbering at the food, but he won't get onboard to get it.

Thanks,

Charles

First you get a smaller, younger female dog. Once she is abaord...

 

[toddster]

There may be two parts to the problem. One is whether or not the dog likes the boat. The second is that he may be afraid to jump onto a moving or unknown platform. It took quite a bit of demonstration and coaxing to get my dogs to jump onto the boat by themselves.

Unfortunately, I seem to have failed in getting them to like the boat. The first few visits were "work" days at the dock in the hot sun which made the dogs very unhappy. The younger dog eventually took in in stride, especially once we started silently gliding past wild animals in the slough. but the older one doesn't even want to walk out on the dock any more. Border collies just don't like the water very much in the first place. And yet she loves riding in the truck so much, she climbs in there by default when she's sad. Go figure.

p.s. It helps to have a little competition. Once one dog "gets it" the other isn't about to be left behind.

 

[Emerald]

Couple thoughts that might help. If you can tie the boat against the pier snug on the fenders to close the gap and make it seem more like the same surface and minimize rocking when stepping aboard, the dog might be more willing to go over the gap. I've had good luck on stairs using a favorite treat, like LIVER. Make a trail of liver pieces starting dockside and onto the side deck, into the cockpit etc. Hopefully a few tastes of liver treats will get the dog going. Also, have some favorite toys and more liver on board and down below so once there, the dog hopefully feels less out of sorts. And as mentioned, dogs like following dogs. If there is a dog playmate that is not boat shy and you can get that dog to lead the way.... But when in doubt, more liver.

 

[chtaylor]

First you get a smaller, younger female dog. Once she is abaord...

In other words, I should become a puppy pimp? :0

 

[chtaylor]

Couple thoughts that might help. If you can tie the boat against the pier snug on the fenders to close the gap and make it seem more like the same surface and minimize rocking when stepping aboard, the dog might be more willing to go over the gap. I've had good luck on stairs using a favorite treat, like LIVER. Make a trail of liver pieces starting dockside and onto the side deck, into the cockpit etc. Hopefully a few tastes of liver treats will get the dog going. Also, have some favorite toys and more liver on board and down below so once there, the dog hopefully feels less out of sorts. And as mentioned, dogs like following dogs. If there is a dog playmate that is not boat shy and you can get that dog to lead the way.... But when in doubt, more liver.

Thanks, David. I'll give the liver a try. Cooked or raw??

Charles

 

[Emerald]

Thanks, David. I'll give the liver a try. Cooked or raw??

Charles

I prefer it in a nice pate, but I bet you'll find Fido goes nuts for it in any form

 

[jwagn12]

Crazy diver

Hey all,
I'm about to take the plunge!

A 1975 E27!

My wife would really like to bring our Newfoundland (dog) along for sails in the future

Does anyone have a good way of getting a 90lb. dog back aboard after a swim?

Also, as the companion way has fairly steep steps, I'm thinking I should figure out an easily removable ramp of some sorts so the dog can get inside and out with relative ease. Does anyone have experience doing this?

Thanks all,

Marcus

My dog is a 55 lbs Black Mouth Cur and he is pretty smart ( in most cases). We made an attachment to the hanging ladder. Its just a floating platform with an additional step under the water. He gets his front paws on the platform and then his back paws come under him as he tries to pull himself up, effectivly connecting with the step. He then uses his back paws to push himslef the rest of the way up on the platform and then we have added additional stairs to increase the angle for him to get all the way back up on deck. It's a little complicated I guess but it beat getting the snot scratched out of my arms and legs and a strained back for my husband. Our dog is a little crazy too and if we are going slow enough, something might catch his eye and next thing we know, he is launching himslef into the water, no fear I tell ya. We just lower the contraption and when he is done messing about, he just climbs back up. We have since also purchased a tether made for small kids and attached it to his life jacket. We can shorten or lenthen the lead as needed.