Harness for swimming??

[blehmannwa]

I'm taking Havoc to the beach. His recall is not reliable and I intend to keep him on a long lead the majority of the time. The problem is that when he romps in the surf and the river, the long lead can get tangled in his legs and I worry about him hurting himself. I'm wondering if a harness with a back loop for the leash would help with the problem.

I intend to work on his recall while there but gulls, pelicans and other dogs are a real challenge.

Any suggestions?

[angelas]

When I took Lucky swimming the the beach that had a leash requirement I used a harness with a d ring on the back and the line was light weight nautical line that floats (as opposed to cotton, leather etc that will sink when wet. I wasn't worried so much about her tangling up her legs when she was coming close to shore, it was while she was out over her head swimming that I worried the leash would tangle and she would go under.

[blehmannwa]

Thank You. I'll look into that.

[AbbyK9]

Any simple nylon harness would work fine for your purposes, I think, as long as it has a D-ring at the back. I've found that most simple cotton long lines do pretty well in water and float okay - I've never had a dog tangle while swimming on a cotton line, at any rate.

[ponyfarm]

What about a dog-flotation device with nylon line? You know, a dog life-jacket.

[Rott-n-GSDs]

I would highly recommend a biothane harness with stainless steel hardware from All Things Bright and Biothane. The tracking harness should be just what you're looking for. They are extremely well made, come in a variety of colors, and are great in water (and mud: they wipe clean!).

[blehmannwa]

Thanks for all the help! The beach that we go to has a crazy undertow and abrupt drop off. Years ago I let my Felony, the pit-bull, loose on it and that crazy girl just ran into the surf chasing sandpipers! Nearly gave me a heart attack, she was a terrible swimmer to boot. My husband thinks that I worry too much but better safe than sorry.

[Chicagocanine]

Yeah in that case I would definitely suggest getting a dog lifevest instead of a harness! The Ruffwear ones are VERY well made and they come with a handle at the top of the vest as well as a place where you can attach a leash to the vest.
Here's a link: Ruffwear Dog Life Jackets

Also if you are going to use a line, I would make sure it floats. This way it is less likely to tangle a swimming dog. I made one out of boating rope which floats. Biothane might work too if it floats?

[martemchik]

Just a thought but I'm guessing you'll be using a 20ft lead, you can easily pull him to where he can stand with it even if he does get tangled. I've always just used a collar and a cotton lead and never had an issue with it sinking or coming close to his feet.