This summer I will have a dog on board with me at times when sailing. I was considering put some protective netting from the lifelines to the toe rail. Is this netting sold at marine stores? I assume I will have to unhook the lifelines to do this. This brings me to my second question. The boat is 15 years old, always fresh water sailed. The lifelines have the white plastic cover, original lifelines. I was thinking of cutting off the plastic and inspecting the lines, if looking good then leave the original lines on the boat. Thoughts about this? Advice? Suggestions. Thanks
dog on board
- Thread starter Mike8193
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How small is the dog? Can the dog be leashed? When I had a sailing dog, he would just stay in the cockpit or when we were approaching the dock we'd put him below and close the hatch, did the same in any bad weather.
Inspect your lifelines for cracks and staining on the vinyl. If there are rust stains or the vinyl has cracked water might have infiltrated. The prime location for cracks is where the life line passes through the stanchion. Some stanchions have a sharp edge on the hole, a prime location for cracks.
Inspect your lifelines for cracks and staining on the vinyl. If there are rust stains or the vinyl has cracked water might have infiltrated. The prime location for cracks is where the life line passes through the stanchion. Some stanchions have a sharp edge on the hole, a prime location for cracks.
Mike,
Answere to your 1st question is the netting is sold at marine stores, usually by the foot. You can weave it through the lifeline however it's a lot easer to attach it with wire ties.
Answere to 2nd question is yes you can remove the protective Côte ing however I don't recommend doing that for a few reasons. The cote ing is on the cable to protect you sails and hands from wire abrasions and burrs. It also helps keep dirt and debris from getting into the cable. Note that lifelines are normally stainless steel and are not under load such as your standing rigging, which is under tremendous load. Therefore your life lines should last a long time provided they are maintained.
My lifelines were 35 five years old and in salt water conditions. The areas that usually fail are swede fitting just like you standing rigging. If they are inspected regularly then they should be good. I only had to replace mine do to storm damage, had that not happen I would most likely still have the originals.
Answere to your 1st question is the netting is sold at marine stores, usually by the foot. You can weave it through the lifeline however it's a lot easer to attach it with wire ties.
Answere to 2nd question is yes you can remove the protective Côte ing however I don't recommend doing that for a few reasons. The cote ing is on the cable to protect you sails and hands from wire abrasions and burrs. It also helps keep dirt and debris from getting into the cable. Note that lifelines are normally stainless steel and are not under load such as your standing rigging, which is under tremendous load. Therefore your life lines should last a long time provided they are maintained.
My lifelines were 35 five years old and in salt water conditions. The areas that usually fail are swede fitting just like you standing rigging. If they are inspected regularly then they should be good. I only had to replace mine do to storm damage, had that not happen I would most likely still have the originals.
There was a thread just last week on removing the plastic from life lines. There might be some good stuff in there for you to use.
Removing Lifeline Coating/Cover
Has anyone removed the coating/cover material from a lifeline? It’s looking pretty tired but I can’t think of a convenient way to remove it. Don’t want to damage the cable that it seems to be adhered to. Would like to replace it with a new removable cover of some kind or just leave them bare...
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My dogs stay in the cockpit but if I were to allow them to go forward I would consider the netting. West Marine. Also, I have the doggie life vests for them. Sometimes I do not make them wear them though because they get hot. They tend to just lie on the floor of the cockpit while sailing so no biggie.
"I will have a dog on board with me at times when sailing", that doesn't sound like the dog will be onboard enough to make it worth the cost and time to install netting.
Find out how the dog is onboard first then decide if it would be helpful. If the dog isn't a puppy you may find it doesn't like sailing and moving decks and you're better off keeping the dog in the cockpit hooked to a leash or tether.
We don't usually let ours (2 small dogs) out of the cockpit underway.
What kind of dog and has it been on the water?
We have our two dogs, Golden Retriever and Dachshund, with us on Maxine on most cruises. They have harnesses from RuffWear and tethers under way. They are never allowed outside the cockpit. They wear life jackets in the dinghy (so do we
). On the hook we allow them freedom in the cockpit but they always have harnesses on so that in the unlikely event that one went overboard, we could recover. They can both swim by the way.
). On the hook we allow them freedom in the cockpit but they always have harnesses on so that in the unlikely event that one went overboard, we could recover. They can both swim by the way.Thank you. Lots of good advice. It is my son's dog and he is a forty pound springer spaniel. He does like sailing. I do have a life jacket on him at all times. I think the best idea is to keep him in the cockpit on a leash. I will look into the harness by RuffWear too. I'll inspect the lifelines closely rather than taking the vinyl off. Thanks again.
For Ruff Wear. We had a standard poodle who walked the deck as he pleased. He was a great sailor. We did not have netting but it probably is a good idea.
Springers are the best! I had one for 14 years. My wife and I took him to the Bahamas from Vermont on our 28' boat one winter.
We didn't have netting but that wouldn't have made a difference, he could jump (spring) through the window of a truck (full sized 4WD!),...from the ground, so he often left the boat...
Arnie would climb an extension ladder - 2 stories - and join me up there as I was building condo's in the 90's. I had to carry him down of course.
The biggest problem with a Springer might be keeping him out of the water, every minute on a sailboat. Arnie was a fish with webbed paws(photo).
He was great company on that winter cruise.
Lots of marine suppliers sell them like Sailrite (link below) and you do not remove the lifelines. I installed netting around my my motor yacht to allow our dog to roam the dock while at dock only. As others have said while sailing our dog is in a life vest, sometimes on a tether and stays in the cockpit. In high winds the dog goes down into the cabin.
I do not recommend cutting off the plastic. If you have signs on the uncoated parts of the life lines then suggest replacing with bare wire. That is what I did on every used sailboat I have owned.
Sailrite has a good video on how to install the netting. netting install
I have had it on Papillon for most of the 22 years we have had her. It has faithfully kept aboard two labridors, one child and her associated friends, two grandkids, too many kids of friends to count, and one wife during a very bad spinnaker take-down!
Make sure to get the real knotted nylon fishnet type of netting. West Marine sell a nylon netting that is knitted instead of knotted and that one letter difference was about 6 years if service lost. The knitted started to unravel like a sweater almost as soon as I installed it and was so ugly after a couple of months that I removed it to stop my shame. I typically get 6-7 years out of knotted netting. The good stuff is make from 3-strand nylon cord that has knots tied at each intersection. The BAD stuff is made with a knitting machine that basically a crochet chain stich and when you get one snag, it will unravel until you heat seal the end to stop it.
I is great to let them have the run of the deck and not worry about slips. Our big male lab would use the lowside netting for a hammock, hanging out over the side to sleep or watch the water go by. It is strong stuff!
I have had it on Papillon for most of the 22 years we have had her. It has faithfully kept aboard two labridors, one child and her associated friends, two grandkids, too many kids of friends to count, and one wife during a very bad spinnaker take-down!
Make sure to get the real knotted nylon fishnet type of netting. West Marine sell a nylon netting that is knitted instead of knotted and that one letter difference was about 6 years if service lost. The knitted started to unravel like a sweater almost as soon as I installed it and was so ugly after a couple of months that I removed it to stop my shame. I typically get 6-7 years out of knotted netting. The good stuff is make from 3-strand nylon cord that has knots tied at each intersection. The BAD stuff is made with a knitting machine that basically a crochet chain stich and when you get one snag, it will unravel until you heat seal the end to stop it.
I is great to let them have the run of the deck and not worry about slips. Our big male lab would use the lowside netting for a hammock, hanging out over the side to sleep or watch the water go by. It is strong stuff!
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At least Mike you are talking about sailing in a lake not the New England coast where there is
We use the netting for the girls, works great, (but they are kind of little). It's difficult to drop the anchor though, extending the bow roller for this season hopefully that'll fix it !
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Do Springers like water? No, not much …
My daughter's Springer, Schotzie swims out to the line-up when the surf is up. These dogs will swim very well without pfd in my opinion. They can slide under the netting pretty easily if not secured all along the bottom. Our dog slid under the lifelines a few times when she was taken by surprise, but she had sea legs pretty readily. I'd be far more concerned in open water like you have on Lake Michigan than we ever were on a small lake. I don't think I would count on the netting. Confining the dog is probably the safest option. Confining a young athletic dog to the cockpit won't be an easy task. I'd be far more concerned about losing sight of a dog in the water than I would be about the dog's ability to swim. Thinking about it, though, wearing something with high visibility would be a good idea.
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Dog PFDs typically have a handle on top. The dog may be a good swimmer, but how are they at climbing a boarding ladder? The handle makes it easier to hoist a wet dog back on board.
My labs could climb the boarding and dock ladders. All I needed to do was place my hand on the back of their head to help them balance and up they came.
The handle on the pfd does make a difference and getting the dog on-board in rough water is definitely an issue. That said, I'll also attest to their ability to climb a ladder. Our Shelby (setter-border collie mix) climbed the ladder on our boat from the water all the time, even tho it was a little painful to watch. We also had a Springer years ago whom climbed a near vertical ladder into a barn loft on regular occasions, just so not to be left behind. Dogs never cease to amaze and amuse!