Now that the temperature outside is starting to climb you may be finding it more difficult to get your dog out without fear of him suffering heat exhaustion. This is a serious concern for dog owners, as the signs of heat exhaustion for dogs can come too late, rapidly turning into an emergency situation.

Luckily for us, most dogs seem to have an affinity for water, be it a small kiddie pool worth or an entire lake. Even those dogs who don’t care for water much can often be coaxed in to get their feet wet.

In preparation for the water fun ahead, we’ve put together some helpful guidelines:

• Make the experience in the water a good one by providing treats, toys and fun.
• Don’t force your dog into the water, as this may result in a lifetime fear.
• Start in the shallow end. Lots of dogs will not know how to swim properly at first, so take it slow.
• If your dog struggles, try helping it along by supporting it’s belly while it swims.
• Consider purchasing a doggie life jacket for long swims or those who struggle.
• Avoid “water freaking” (where your dog starts swimming and doesn’t come back) by rewarding your dog for staying close by, teaching it a solid “come” command, and keeping the doggie life jacket secured. 
• Consider teaching your adoptable to swim, as a water dog is a fun dog!

Water games!

Water Toss: The easiest way to teach this game is by starting off on land. For these exercises you can follow the training for “fetch”. Once your dog is joyfully retrieving via land start tossing the toy close to the waters edge, then ease your dog further into the water by increasing the distance thrown from shore. If your dog ever balks at a certain distance, throw the toy at the distance before that one and proceed more slowly. You’ll want to start with water that is shallow and without waves to begin with, such as the shore of a lake, a kiddie pool, or try some playtime with your pup in the bathtub. Once your dog gets the hang of this, start tossing the toy in erratic directions. You can do the long toss for deeper swimming, the right-over-the-head toss to get your dog to leap from the water, or the random toss so your dog has to find out where it landed.

Bobbing Doggie: This is an easy and fun game to teach your pooch by utilizing a kiddie pool, bath tub, or even a bowl of water. Start with some food that your dog likes which floats in water (like popcorn, bread or ice). Toss the food near the waters edge to entice your dog to play the game, then toss it into shallow water. Most dogs will go for the food, picking it right off the top of the water. If your dog doesn’t, try tossing it back on land some more and ease your dog into the water slower than before. Once your dog is quickly grabbing the food off the top of the water toss some food which is more dense, such as a dog biscuit. This food will sink more and require your dog to dump his nose in a bit in order to get it. If your dog balks at this point, try a higher value treat and/or one that is less dense to ease your dog in. Once your dog is dipping in you can start using treats which sink to the bottom, coining a word for the action such as “dunk” or “get’um” or whatever you like. Make the game interesting by switching rewards between various foods and toys, tossing them erratically to make your dog search for them or filling up a kiddie pool full of toys and treats and letting your dog have at it.