dogs and oregon...portland area

[ramedud]

My brother and his gf live in Portland with their dog and they go everywhere. The waterfalls, downtown... you name it. Some places are off-limits to pets obviously, but I think Portland is pet friendly.

[organicgreen]

Originally Posted by hamellr

Beaverton is dog friendly. There are two off-leash parks, one on 195th and Farmington, the other in Hillsboro near the Baseball Stadium.

All other parks are on-leash only, and provide bags to clean up afterwards. Dogs are not allowed to swim in ponds/lakes/rivers in any city park in Oregon anyways. They're also not allowed to chase or molest the wildlife. (And for god's sake, don't feed the animals! Even Ducks/geese!)

You really don't want your dog swimming anyways (at least outside of summer,) because it's cold enough in general that they'll get sick.

The only place I know that blue-green algae grows is in Upper Klamath Lake. It is harvested and sold as a nutritional supplement to humans by a couple of companies in Klamath Falls, so I'm not sure what it's affects on dogs would be.

My Lab swims 3 times a week in the Columbia river. We do this year around even in the coldest winter days. He been in half frozen lakes without being fazed. Dogs don't have an immune system. Larger water dogs don't get sick from swimming in cold water. This is very disturbing news that dogs can't swim in Oregon. But been to the West linn offlesh park and seen many dogs swimming in Lake Oswego.

[hamellr]

Originally Posted by organicgreen

My Lab swims 3 times a week in the Columbia river. We do this year around even in the coldest winter days. He been in half frozen lakes without being fazed. Dogs don't have an immune system. Larger water dogs don't get sick from swimming in cold water. This is very disturbing news that dogs can't swim in Oregon. But been to the West linn offlesh park and seen many dogs swimming in Lake Oswego.

I've lost two dogs due to letting them swim in rivers and getting too cold. Your's maybe fine, but I personally wouldn't let mine do so again on cold days.

Lake Oswego may be different because it's a Private Lake. If it's a lake on or in a public park then it's generally not allowed. Remote wilderness lakes are fine as are rivers and the ocean.

[Twilighter]

Originally Posted by organicgreen

Dogs don't have an immune system.

What gave you that idea?

Our vet has seen quite a few dogs contract leptospirosis from spending time in local bodies of water. There is a lepto vaccine. Our dog got giardia after drinking from a stream in the Gorge.

[doggiemama]

Originally Posted by Twilighter

Our dog got giardia after drinking from a stream in the Gorge.

Yikes! Noted.

[Nell Plotts]

People get that too. You see a clear babbling stream in a pristine area and assume it is free of unhealthy bugs so you fill up your water bottle.

[organicgreen]

Originally Posted by hamellr

I've lost two dogs due to letting them swim in rivers and getting too cold. Your's maybe fine, but I personally wouldn't let mine do so again on cold days.

Lake Oswego may be different because it's a Private Lake. If it's a lake on or in a public park then it's generally not allowed. Remote wilderness lakes are fine as are rivers and the ocean.

How did you lose your dogs by swimming in the river? Just curious because my almost drowned last winter as he got stuck between some branches. I had to rescue him.

[hamellr]

Originally Posted by organicgreen

How did you lose your dogs by swimming in the river? Just curious because my almost drowned last winter as he got stuck between some branches. I had to rescue him.

One got swept away in the early spring current. By the time we found her down stream she was exhausted from fighting the current. She got sick and died just under a week later.

The other one was chasing a racoon at night, fell into the river when it was just above freezing. Found him laying by the river in the morning and despite being put by the stove to warm up, he was gone by the time the vet arrived.

We had a river splitting the farm in half. You had to wade across it, or walk to the other end of the property to cross the bridge. The livestock were kept on the other side, so there were daily trips to check on them. The entire pack of dogs (6-12) would come along on every trip.

[hamellr]

Originally Posted by Nell Plotts

People get that too. You see a clear babbling stream in a pristine area and assume it is free of unhealthy bugs so you fill up your water bottle.

Important survival trick, if you must drink from a stream in an emergency situation, drink from a water fall. Do not ever drink from standing water.

[organicgreen]

Good one hamellr!