Bringing dogs aboard

DougM

.
Jul 24, 2005
2,242
Beneteau 323 Manistee, MI
I have a four month old Golden Retriever. He’s presently a cross. between The Tasmanian Devil and the energizer bunny. He loves the water, and has been on the boat at the dock. Presently I don’t think he’s a candidate for a boat trip until he gets fixed and is a year old.
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TomY

Alden Forum Moderator
Jun 22, 2004
2,758
Alden 38' Challenger yawl Rockport Harbor
Having read a zillion posts like this one, I'm reluctant to say that our two small dogs just go on deck.

I follow with dog bags(if needed) and a small bucket with fresh water that we leave in the cockpit.

There are two deck drains per side deck that drain internally to below the waterline. Mostly I just pour a cup or two of fresh water and the deck is clean.

This means no night time shore walks, I can enjoy coffee at dawn never leaving the boat and best of all, stay dry in foul weather. And they love to be on the boat.

I just don't like to brag about it. :) Well, except this guy often lifts his leg on a stanchion and goes overboard. That is pretty remarkable.

Tommy sleeping.jpg
 
Oct 22, 2014
20,989
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
The boating option for our Hurricane Lily is still undecided.
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At four months she owns the furniture. As I look about the sunroom I see dog toys scattered about the floor like our grand children do. Play with a toy for 30 seconds, drop it, go to the toy bin and get another. My wife says “At least she is not eating your slippers or gnawing on the furniture.”

Not sure how we will get her from boat deck to water taxis. No scoop deck or swim platform. Oh sure she can likely leap from dock to boat but not sure about boat to kayak. I’m told she is a miniature. Only 40 lbs. less than your dinghy motor. Time will tell she already eats more than our 5 year old grand daughter.

Dog on a boat. Have we all lost our minds?
 

DougM

.
Jul 24, 2005
2,242
Beneteau 323 Manistee, MI
The boating option for our Hurricane Lily is still undecided.
View attachment 198272

At four months she owns the furniture. As I look about the sunroom I see dog toys scattered about the floor like our grand children do. Play with a toy for 30 seconds, drop it, go to the toy bin and get another. My wife says “At least she is not eating your slippers or gnawing on the furniture.”

Not sure how we will get her from boat deck to water taxis. No scoop deck or swim platform. Oh sure she can likely leap from dock to boat but not sure about boat to kayak. I’m told she is a miniature. Only 40 lbs. less than your dinghy motor. Time will tell she already eats more than our 5 year old grand daughter.

Dog on a boat. Have we all lost our minds?
Sounds like Milo.
Seems like what goes in one end multiplies before going out the other end…
Might need to upsize from a pooper scooper to a backhoe.
 
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Sep 11, 2019
165
Hunter 386 Lake St. Clair
We took our dog out Samantha a couple times. She's 12 now and about 50lbs. That last time, we were packing up and had the trunk open. Took her to the marina dog park and on the way back, she jumped up in the trunk. You have to remember she's 12 so this was quite the feat. She was done. Lifting her up and down the stairs in the cabin was not easy either. Needless to say, her sailing days are over.
 
Oct 19, 2017
7,732
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
I could never convince my dogs that it was ok to use a pee rug. If we had shore access, I took them to shore in the the dink. It does limit where you decide to anchor.
We sailed from Rockland Maine to Yarmouth Nova Scotia with a friend who brought his dog. When he needed to pee, because of the long overnight sail, he had to be taught to pee on the deck. He wouldn't go and searched the boat trying to find a good spot, but nowhere worked for him. Finally, my mother volunteered my services to go into the deck and demonstrate. I lead him out of the cockpit of our schooner and peed on the deck so he could see. He followed suit about fifteen minutes later.

-Will
 
Oct 29, 2016
1,915
Hunter 41 DS Port Huron
We sailed from Rockland Main to Yarmouth Nova Scotia with a friend who brought his dog. When he needed to pee, because of the long overnight sail, he had to be taught to pee on the deck. He wouldn't go and searched the boat trying to find a good spot, but nowhere worked for him. Finally, my mother volunteered my services to go into the deck and demonstrate. I lead him out of the cockpit of our schooner and peed on the deck so he could see. He followed suit about fifteen minutes later.

-Will
Will,

I am looking to teach my dog Mozart, you available..........apparently you have the golden touch......

Mozart 4.jpg
 
Last edited:
Mar 2, 2019
433
Oday 25 Milwaukee
Ruby and bobbie on Enigma.jpg

Ruby ,the one on the left loves being on the boat . We've had her slide off the deck and into the water 1 Bobbie and myself were surprised how difficult it was to lift her back and board . The water seemed so much further away way you have to haul 60 pounds straight up in four foot waves . She's tethered now ! We also plan for shore breaks every four or five hours
 

RoyS

.
Jun 3, 2012
1,739
Hunter 33 Steamboat Wharf, Hull, MA
Our previous standard poodle loved to spot other animals. Although I pointed out seals swimming near our boat he could not tell them from all the surrounding lobster pots. One Spring I took him to the Boston Aquarium where there was an outside seal tank display. He was all over that. From that point on he spent most of his sailing time on deck looking for seals. Wish I could take our dogs to the zoo!
 

HMT2

.
Mar 20, 2014
899
Hunter 31 828 Shoreacres, TX
I sail with all my dogs. My last Golden would come to the center of the cockpit when I said “we are going to come about”. I still miss her. This is the next generation at 12 weeks then eight months later. I do have to get the dog hair out of my scuppers pretty regularly, for me a small price to pay for great company and a good listener.



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Oct 19, 2017
7,732
O'Day 19 Littleton, NH
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Bear was a chow/samoyed mix that traveled with us when we towed a hobie 18 all over the country. He was a companion dog that went everywhere with us, job interviews, traveling from state to state for traveling nurse assignments, we almost never leashed him even going for walks in new cities. He just like to be with us.

He loved to sail, but we didn't realize how much he loved boats until we visited my father aboard his Freedom 44 while in Charleston. Bear quickly made himself comfortable and when we all decided to head into town, we hopped off the boat and headed down the dock. Bear was staring at us from the gangway until we called him to us. Then he jumped off the boat and headed to us. Halfway up the dock, he changed his mind and ran back and jumped on the boat and said, I'm good here. You guys go for a walk if you need to, but I'll stay with the boat. He did, we didn't leash him or close him inside. He was happy aboard.

-Will
 
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