A Little Swim

This past Saturday I went with my sister to a nearby lake to teach Henri to swim. Sure, dogs naturally know how to swim, but some, including mine, don't like to be in water. We never got a chance last summer and Henri is two now. I didn't want to wait much longer for fear that he would just settle into his "I don't like to be wet" attitude and I would never be able to get him to swim. He did have one experience as a puppy where he "accidently" jumped into a family members pool. He freaked out. I just don't think he knew what he was doing or what to expect. He was startled, but I thought he could learn to like it, if given a chance.

We humans were not allowed to swim in this lake, which was a drawback as I thought he would maybe come to me if I was in the water, but we would have had to drive further to get to a lake that both of us were allowed to swim in. This was more of a trial, to see how he'd do before we made a longer trek to have him freeze and not be willing to move. My sister brought one of her dogs so there was someone to show him how things were done.

I was so proud of him! This is why I share it, days later! I keep going back and looking at the pictures. It makes me smile! Henri put on his life vest and started exploring the water. He didn't seem bothered by the vest or the water. I bought him a special toy, just for playing with when we went swimming. He hardly hesitated to go get it when I threw it out into the water. I attached it to a lead so we wouldn't lose it and I didn't throw it really far, but he kept going out and getting it. I think if it hadn't been slick right where he went in, he would have charged in after it, like he chases after his toys at home.

We did have to force him to go off the dock to really swim. He might not have loved it, but he was so good at swimming! He didn't panic, he just started to swim towards the shore each time we put him in the water. This is where I hope being in the water myself will come in handy. Between that and his toy, hopefully he will begin to jump in himself.

After a few trips off the dock, we would go back to chasing the toy, to reinforce the fun he was having. We took his vest off after awhile, to see how he'd do. I think he liked it better while he had his vest on. He would still go out to get the toy, but instead of turning around, he would would just back up till he got to more shallow water. He must have felt a difference, but he still wanted to chase the toy.

Not bad for a trial! I hope that if he goes more often, he will begin to enjoy it more, even if chasing after a toy is what he really enjoys.

All of this has nothing to do with our run today, which we did, but, a year ago, when I put that life vest on Henri, he would freeze. He would not move. He would stand wherever I had put the vest on him and stare at me solemnly. I would gave him treats for sniffing the vest and while he was wearing it, but I couldn't coax him to take a step in it. This weekend, he didn't act like it bothered him to wear it. I think he's getting more confident and that he's trusting me more as we continue to bond. That has everything to do with our running.