Kodi and his swim vest

[patriot201]

Originally Posted by pureluck

What's the benifite of the swim vest?

I'm not sure about Kodi, but for other dogs, they can be life-savers. Dogs are generally good swimmers (though some breeds/individuals are better than others!), but they can tire easily, which can lead to drowning. Some breeds are also just not as good in the water.

This is an old article, but it explains the need for life jackets for dogs on boats.

[Va-Cat]

Originally Posted by pureluck

What's the benifite of the swim vest?

Originally Posted by zxas6699

This is for big dogs, how about the little ones?

Originally Posted by patriot201

I'm not sure about Kodi, but for other dogs, they can be life-savers. Dogs are generally good swimmers (though some breeds/individuals are better than others!), but they can tire easily, which can lead to drowning. Some breeds are also just not as good in the water.

This is an old article, but it explains the need for life jackets for dogs on boats.

Swimming is an excellent way to exercise dogs. Kodi came to me under-nurished and had been locked in a kennel so long that he had very little body fat and his muscles had begun to atrophy.

Its a misconception that dogs "automatically know how to swim well". For Kodi, with so little body fat, he would have sank like a stone if I had let him try to swim without holding him up. His vest gives him extra buoyancy without my help. That is helping him to build confidence and enjoy swimming. Once he has a bit more weight, a bit more muscle and has grown in a bit more of his coat (in his breed it captures air and repels water) he won't need the vest anymore.

Just as important (as the article says), a vest can save your dog's life in a boating accident. I don't care how good a swimmer someone's dog is. I believe if its on a boat, it should have a vest on!

Vests come in a wide range of sizes from very small (yorkies, chis and other tiny breeds) all the way up to XXL for Mastiffs, Danes, Wolkhounds and such. They are designed so that they do not limit a dogs range of motion so they are comfortable for them. Finally - and this is really important when dealing with a bratty puppy - they have a "handle" on the back!!!!