Dog on a boat....what do I need to know?

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norman

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My family wants a dog. Me...not so much but I think I'm outvoted on this one.
So what do I need to know about having a dog on board?
I have an average size cruiser (28 footer) and the dog is a Sheltie...one of those miniature collie things.
Where do they sleep?
Where do they eat?
Where do they do their business?
Do I need an tender so they can do their business?
Do they need a doggie lifejacket?

I know these may seem like basic questions but honestly I know nothing about having a dog on a boat.

Thanks,

~Norm (new to doggyland)
 
Where do they sleep? - wherever they want, unless YOU train them otherwise

Where do they eat? - see prior answer

Where do they do their business? - onshore if you are paying attention. otherwise your cabin or cockpit works for them

Do I need an tender so they can do their business? - If you don't want to be dependent on a launch, well, then yes. Check that, seriosly, you need to ask this?

Do they need a doggie lifejacket? - Yes, hifhly recommended.
 
Bring them a dog bed like they use at home, then let them sleep in the cockpit or the cabin.
They usually eat less on the boat, but the same food as home. Keep it in a sealed container.
Gotta go ashore from time to time, or train them to use those sheets from the pet store.
Where you travel, can you dock the boat easily two or more times a day, if so, then no.
Yes, get them a lifejacket and let them swim with it on for practice.
Enjoy the company of a good dog.
 
Where do they sleep? Anywhere they want.
Where do they eat? Anywhere they want.
Where do they do their business? Either on land or where they're trained to go. Emphasis on 'trained'!
Do I need an tender so they can do their business? Up to you--water's cold up there! I use a slip loop on the end of a long lead attached to his life jacket; enough to reach the beach from the boat.
Do they need a doggie lifejacket? Depends on the dog. Don't know if Shelties are natural swimmers. My Vizsla IS, but still needs one as he forgets to use his back legs sometimes.

Can you rent for a few times to try it out? :)
 
I believe ITK answered many of your questions but I'll chime in as well. Our bulldog pretty much has the run of our boat.Her eating and sleeping patterns are the same as at home. She eats what we put in the bowl and sleeps where its cool. Be it our bunk or the cockpit floor. You better have the "business" part down pat before you bring the dog aboard. If we stay at a marina there is usually a dog run in the area. Carry lots of plastic bags even if there is a run. Some dogs just cant hold it in after waiting for you to get them off the boat. If you plan on anchoring out you had better get a dinghy. You aren't gonna like swimming the dog to shore and I'm pretty sure the dog won't like being dumped over the side to fend for itself.

There are always exceptions to the rule. My buddy has a mutt that will jump over the side, swim to shore to do its business and then swim back out to the boat. That reminds me..you'll want a harness on the dog. pretty easy to choke a dog out lifting it into the boat by a collar. Some Doggie lifejackets come with handles too.

Best i ever saw though was a beautiful catamaran sailboat anchored next to us one weekend. They had a big piece of astro turf up on deck. the dogs did their business there. These people were big time sailors, and said they sometimes went weeks without touching land. We love our bully on board.
 
Thanks guys...and Steve thanks for the tip on those sheets. I'll have a look.
 
The dog will be your responsibility. It is not a shared responsibility. I mean sharing your dog and its product (feces, urine and noise) with other boaters is not always appreciated. If you can't get up early enough to make it to the doggy dump area consider not bringing the dog to the marina.
 
For most people, the dog ends up driving the boat's agenda and itinerary. Made no sense to us when we went cruising full time, so gave the dog, who we were very fond of, to one of the kids. We ended up having a tremendous amount more freedom than "dog boaters" we knew. In my personal opinion, the best bet is to leave the dog at home or a kennel for anything more than a day cruise or overnight.
 
there was a transient at my marina recently that had a dog on board.
the woman that owned the dog would walk him on the docks. when i asked
her if she walks him on the docks at her home marina she said yes. she couldn't understand my disgust with her.
 
We take both of our border collies with us all of the time unless there is fireworks involved or we just want a weekend away, after all they are like children. The one thing that is a pain is the early morning ritual. If you are not willing to get up early every day when the dog decides to get up then dont get a dog. We have life jackets for both dogs but rarely use them anymore since they are decent swimmers and mind well. We bought an extra wide bowl for their water that will keep the water in it without tipping over even when we go up on plane. One of the dogs sleeps with us and the other sleeps on top of the front seat by the AC vent. As far as doing there business we take them out early and whenever we get the chance. The only accidents in the boat where when they were puppies, life is getting much simpler now. Just realize that you cannot lock them up in a hot cabin, those things get hot as heck on bright sunny days. Keep plenty of drinking water on the boat and be ready to keep filling it up. We love having our pets with us even if they take a little extra care. Oh, one more thing, expect the unexpected. Our youngest pup Lucy has just started to be off leash when we go to the bathroom (only when other pets and people are not around) but just before leaving to come back home we took here up and returned. Told her to get in the boat, done several times already this weekend, and she jumps off dock onto swim platform, heads toward door on other side, stops, looks at water, and yep....jumped right in!!!

Good luck and always keep an eye on them.
 
quote:
Originally posted by caltexfla

In my personal opinion, the best bet is to leave the dog at home or a kennel for anything more than a day cruise or overnight.
Click to expand...


+1

Bob
 
Vided,when challenged about that kind of behavior, the thoughtless dog owner can be very defensive. I decided any comment I would make would be very non-threatening. So I came up with the following for inconsiderate transients, "Gee, you won't make many new friends here letting Bowzer do that." I tried it once on a very hungover young lady. She responded, "Fxxx you, I'm not here to make any new friends!" Oh well.
 
quote:
Originally posted by vided

there was a transient at my marina recently that had a dog on board.
the woman that owned the dog would walk him on the docks. when i asked
her if she walks him on the docks at her home marina she said yes. she couldn't understand my disgust with her.

Click to expand...


Well, she did answer your question.
 
all miniature kinds of dogs, also called lap dogs, not good on boat, suffer from heat, motion, noise. leave him home to sleep under AC. the more miniature dog sleep, the longer dog live. some kind of dogs love boating: Portuguese water dog, big poodle, medium mutt dogs, Russel, Rottweiler, collie. Any dog jumping to water, usually love boating. usually marinas badly infected with flies and ticks. leave him home. if it is fun for you, doesn't mean it is fun for dog, like walking the dog outside when it is 100deg heat, or running along busy road. I seen women running along highway with golden retriever during hot summer day. what's here the benefit for dog?
 
We are long time dog lovers and have had no problems with our pets in any travel situation. I want to stress a important point made by ITK in his first post. Your dog needs to be trained. Dogs don't mispbehave and bother other people,thir owners do. This happens because they don't train the dog and/or they do not take responsibility for their behavior.

They can be a lot of fun and give great enjoyment, but they require a lot of effort. Don't forget not everyone enjoys pets.

Enjoy the family time and the pet. These moments will be gone faster then you know.

John
 
We have always had dogs (medium sized poodles & mutts)on the boat and they're part of the family. It never kept us from going anywhere and we've kept the boat at a mooring and at marinas, anchored out overnight, have taken trips all over Long Island, Ct, RI, Mass and parts of NJ and we fished off Montauk for many years.

The dogs never did their business on the boat. If not at a dock, we would row or sail the dinghy to the beach 2-3 times a day. As kids, we usually did the morning and afternoon shuttling since we wanted to play on the beach anyway. Dad did the nightime duty.

We currently have a bichon and she has been boating with us since we adopted her 7 years ago. We do have a life jacket for her that she wears when we're away from the dock. We also have a tag attached to her harness with her name, our phone number and town/state. She has unexpectedly jumped in and fallen overboard, but because we've had her in swimming with us, she was ok.

When we're underway everything gets put away, including her food and water bowl. I don't think she would care because she's up on the bridge with us!

It does take patience and training, but so do kids and look at how much we put up with them.
 
Norm,
Is that your boat?
If you do not like dogs aboard, that should be it. End of discussion.
If you just want to "play along" with the admiral, make sure SHE and ONLY
SHE assumes all the responsibilities of having a dog aboard, not you.
If you love dogs and want them aboard, both you and the dog need training!
 
shelties-2.jpg


Picked up the puppy today (the one on the right marked sold). I was reluctant to have a dog but when he curled up in my arms and fell asleep my heart melted. He's a member of the family now. Not sure when his first boat trip will be but thanks for the tips. I'll take them all to heart.
 
Very cut dog. We took lucy our border collie out 1 month after we got her. We just made sure that she had a life jacket on or was the admiral would take a long leash and put it around her ankle so she could not go jumping off. Both of our bc's love the boat and whenever we get our bags to leave for the boat they both run down the stairs and wait by the door to go. Dogs are a lot smarter than we give credit for and you will soon find out if your dog really likes it our not.
 
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