What an encouraging video! Cesar (the Dog Whisperer) is teaching a Great Dane to swim who is afraid of water. It’s a short video, yet it demonstrates the essentials in case you also have a dog who is afraid of swimming. The Great Dane’s name is Optimus, and he’s been afraid of entering the pool for a long time.
In this video, Cesar gently guide Optimus to take his very first step, let him just stand there to feel the experience. This wait time helps Optimus to get a feel for what it’s like to have his paws in the water. Cesar did not pull on Optimus’ leash, just put some tension on it so Optimus knows what Cesar wants from him when he’s ready to experience more.
How to teach a dog to swim
There’s an excellent article in AKC outlining each step of teaching your dog to swim, whatever the size of the dog. Let’s say you have a small dog, and the pool is just too large for him to take his first step. You can use a children’s pool, maybe adding a ladder so it’s easy for your dog to get in the pool, and get out of the pool.
It’s important to let them experience safety by knowing there’s a way out of the pool. Every single step of courage, praise, praise. If your dog is reluctant, try putting a life jacket on him so he can feel the buoyancy.
Just know that some dogs are just never going to go in that pool. Don’t force them. You may need more than one attempt to teach your dog to swim. It might help to have another dog who loves to swim present. This can encourage your dog.
And after he’s more comfortable in the water, consider a water sport with him. You want to keep the experience of being in the water fun for him. You can read more about this topic here. This video is relatively short, yet it gives us a general idea of how to teach our dogs to swim. Enjoy watching how quick this Great Dane get over his fear to swim.
If you enjoy this video, here is another one of a dog learning to swim at the beach.
Article source: AKC
