Indoor swimming for dogs

[Zumie05]

Hey all. Some of you guys might recall earlier posts about my boy Gary (8mo now) limping and showing signs of HD. If not, well he bunny hops and sometimes cries when he gets up and limps if I take him for too long of a walk, I'm talking if he is out for longer than 10 minutes.

I am worried that due to his decrease in exercise that he isn't going to build muscle up in his hind legs as well as he should, so I found a place nearby that has an indoor doggie pool to help build muscle for injured dogs or ones recovering from surgery, to keep agility dogs in shape, or just for fun.

Gary has never gone swimming before, but I have him signed up to go for the first time tomorrow. I am so excited, and nervous at the same time because he hasn't ever swam before. There's going to be a trainer in the pool with us to help him out, but still I am nervous! I really don't see how we are going to get him in the pool without dragging him or at least picking him up and putting him in. What is neat though is that they also have an underwater treadmill thing which I will end up doing if we simply can't get him into the pool.

Has anyone else ever done anything like this before? If all goes well I want to get Gary swimming at least once a week to help keep him in shape.

I'll update tomorrow to let you all know how it went!

[cleaningchick]

Our 5 year old female Carmen swims every week for thirty minutes.
She had a double t.p.l.o. 3 years ago. It has been great for her. She doesn't do the underwater treadmill.
Most dogs that he has come there will swim after the ball. Not ours. I sit at the end of the
pool with a treat and she swims against the current to get it. :)
I highly recommend swimming, it is such a great low impact exercise for dogs.
It may take a while to get him used to it but hopefully it works out for you!

[debbiej]

lucky you to find a swimming facility and lucky Gary to have such a good person! swimming will be wonderful for him. I took my girl to hydrotherapy when I first found out about her HD. it was quite expensive and I did it for a while. then we got a pool and started her on adequan injections. swimming is the very best exercise for him. they probably will have steps or a ramp or something to get him in. good luck!

[Nishasmom]

Nisha has never been swimming inside, but she loves the lake! Have you ever tried a baby-pool or played in the hose with Gary? Does he ever try and get in the shower/bath with you; if so, these may be good signs that he likes water !

I think he will do great; keep it positive and don't let him freak out. When introducing Nisha to water, everything was done on her own pace. Of course they cant wait forever with Gary, but maybe bring his favorite treats along to help "coax" him in. Please do let us know how his first time swimming goes! They make doggie life-vests; he may feel more comfortable if he floats.

***Good luck Gary!***

Did you ever take him to get x-rays?

[hokisteph5]

Last summer Samson and Gretchen both swam at a nearby lake a couple times a week. This past winter I did take them a few times to swim at a resort with an inground, indoor pool.

I just got my boat slip last weekend for the lake this summer so they'll be back to swimming regularly in about a month. It really is good exercise for them and I love how tired they get.

[hcelsa]

Excellent! I think you'll find that once he gets comfortable Gary will LOVE going to the pool .

Swimming in a heated pool was instrumental in keeping my beloved Elsa healthy and happy while she was fighting bone cancer, she went once or twice a week up until the end.

Now my dogs go to the "spa" for a good workout combined with stretching, and T-Touch as often as I can afford it (with priority on getting Roca and Arnie there since they're almost 9). None of my guys have any specific issues, but they do move more fluidly afterwards (that stretching is SO beneficial). It's also one of the only activities that completely wears out Arnie.

Where are you taking him? We usually go to Pampered Paw in Enumclaw, but I've got a few friends who to go Happy Tails, and then there is also the underwater treadmill in Sumner at Dogs World.

[Zumie05]

Well we just got back from swimming! It was really fun and Gary had a blast. This was his first time EVER in water swimming, before at the beach he would only go as far as dipping his feet in then running back out.

The first 5 minutes or so we spent getting him to walk down the ramp into the pool and it only took a hand full of treats to convince him to get in. They made Gary wear a pink harness (lol) and then once he was in the instructor held his harness while I used treats to get him to swim around. Having never swam before, he was splashing his front paws way too high over the water and was making a huge mess everywhere and got everyone outside the pool soaked! The instructor said he was panicking a little bit, but it is just his first time so he is actually being okay.

Eventually I brought out one of his favorite toys, his goose, and he was swimming all over the place after that. By the end of the session he still coudln't really swim on his own, but with the help of the instructor holding hip up by his waist Gary got really good and learned to keep his paws a little below the surface and he stopped panicking. By the end of the session he was so proud looking and had no problem walking down the ramp all by himself.

The whole experience was a great boost to his confidence and he was SO TIRED by the end! The whole car ride home he laid down, and now at home he is napping on his bed. WOO HOO! I signed up for 10 sessions and am going to try to take him 1 - 2 times a week. They have an underwater treadmill too and next time we go he is going to give that a shot.

Hcelsa - I am taking him to a place in Shoreline called SpawZ. A friend of mine had also mentioned the Happy Tails place, but I live in Lynnwood so the place in Shoreline for me was only a 15 min drive! Sometime I want to go to happy tails because they allow for group swims. Once he is better at swimming I might have a pool party for all the pooches there

[Zumie05]

Here are some pics of Gary's swim today!

Gary on ramp

Gary Swimming

[jonesjoyful]

what a handsome boy!!! you are so lucky to have such a place. our roxy has HD in both hips (8 mos old) and she limps at times...we cant do much more than 15 minute walks..i wish we had some where to take her swimming...

[debbiej]

that is really great! he is a handsome boy! I bet you will find that the muscle he builds in the time you have him signed up for will be visible. the more muscle, the more activity, the more activity, the more muscle. you are (both) SO lucky to have a place like that close by!

[Zumie05]

I really am hoping that this is going to help. Right now I am feeling as if what we did on Friday may have made him a little worse. After the swim when we got home he was limping more than usual and started whining again for getting up. I pray that it is because his muscles are sore and not because any damage was done to his hips or anything

Anyways, we are going again in two weeks to make sure he is 100% ready to go again. He is also going on the treadmill this time. Can't wait!