Yorkie Swimmers
 

I'm wondering how many of us have yorkies who swim and whether you think they enjoy it?

Callie can swim and she hates it, Joey swims well but he prefers floating on a float, and Penny loves it. Both Joey and Penny will bark and cry to get in the pool if we get in without them and they all have life jackets.

Out of my now 4 passed girls two were water buffalo's. As a camper then, I camped where there was a lake, these two I could not keep out of the water. For the days I did not go to the lake I bought them a huge baby pool. 6AM we all woke up, I would send them out to potty, they headed for the pool instead lol, I had to shoo them out to make their pee pee lol. My girls did not "enjoy" swimming they "loved" it. I miss them sooooo much.

Thank you!

Were they all young pups when you introduced them to swimming?

Katy never warmed up to swimming. When Katy was a very young pup, she used to surveil the pool. Early on, before she had gone swimming, she was going through her routine. We had guests, and the little one was really showing off. You know the act--nose up in the air, doing the yorkie shuffle. Suddenly--plop!!! She went in. I had her out in a flash, but she was so confused and embarrassed.

As a senior she would bark at me if I got in the water without her, but she didn't like being in the water either. She had a life jacket and wore it, but it may have detracted from the experience. She'd be ever so happy when we were _both_ out of the water.

Have always suspected that mis-step early on left Katy fearful of water--either because of how she went in, or because of how fast I pulled her out.

I grew up on a lake, and our dogs loved to swim. They would wade into the lake as easily as they would climb into their beds. As pups, the boys took them to the marsh for duck hunting. The dogs were big and strong.

:)

Thank you.

Do you remember how you introduced them to the water? Was their first experience at the lake?

You wrote, "I miss them soooo much." They leave behind such a good-sized footprint. It is hard.

Located this 2007 thread on YorkieTalk, "Can Yorkies swim in a pool?"

Callie was a year or so when I put her in a blow up pool and she clawed onto me and then after I got her out she wouldn’t look at me for hours. She came out and acted interested last year so my dad put her in and she swam from one side to the other and wanted out and choses not to go out side anymore when we are in the pool lol. When Joey was a puppy I had a blow up pool I was playing in and when his paws could still touch the ground she loved playing fetch and splashing in it. We didn’t get the bigger pool until the next year when he was about a year and a few months. Penny was 3 months shy of a year when she first got in the pool. She will play swim fetch. My cousin had a lab who was a duck dog for a long time sadly he had to be put to sleep last week at 17 due to cancer. My dads brothers and sisters own a piece of land where there used to be a lake house that flooding took away that they use for camping now and they all have multiple dogs that love the lake. All are bigger dogs. Brit who is the member user name Britster has Jackson who loves swimming.

Gidget is my second Yorkie. Teddy was afraid to go to the edge of the water. Probably because I'm not a swimmer and not a beachie person. Same with Gidget. Guess it all depends on your lifestyle and introducing them to that lifestyle at an early age. Just like people, though, some of them will take to the water no matter what and others will steer clear of water. Matter of personal (or furbaby) preference.

Thank you.

I'm going to make a list of things to which the new little one should be exposed, and pool water is one of those things.

Hopeful that exposing her in a non-forceful and non-threatening way would be a good thing. I'm not sure these little ones could get out of a swimming pool on their own.

Perhaps she could learn how to find and swim to the steps?

That's a good idea.

Thank you.

My pack of 3 were all 3 years apart, I started camping when I had one dog, she did not like the water, wouldn't go near it, then #2 came along, she was about 11 months old when camping season started, she was my frisbee girl, I didn't introduce her to the lake, she did that herself. I was tossing her frisbee in the grass where the lake was, the lake had a sandy beach, she ran after her frisbee and got it, instead of returning to me, she went into the lake with that frisbee held high and started paddling around, I went charging into the lake after her scared she would drown and got her out, leash on and back to the trailer we went. The next day I took her back to the lake area to see what she would do, and don't ya know, with that beloved frisbee of hers back in the lake she went. After that I bought her a large round kiddie pool, she would go in and out of it, but swimming is what she loved to do, but it had to be with her frisbee lol. 3 years later #3 came along, I got her in July on a camping trip, it was the next summer, she was about 13 or 14 months old, off to the lake we went, my Kajon the frisbee girl headed off to the water, Schnae the baby was not trusted off the leash, had her on a retractable and went running after her sister towing me behind, Kajon was paddling around, she was in full coat and her hair was floating atop the water, Schnae stopped at the shore line, looked and before I knew it was paddling out to her sister, lol, I didn't let her go to far, she had short little legs and this was her first time swimming. From that day on I now had 2 water buffalo's lol. I got rid of the round kiddie pool and got them a huge kiddie pool, Schnae could actually paddle around in it, kajon had longer legs and just about touched the bottom, so if it wasn't the lake they had their pool, they would stay in either pool or lake for hours if I let them lol. No life jackets for them, but I never let them stay for long periods in the lake. My 4th girl came after my 2 oldest passed away, her intro to the lake was, she was chasing Canadian geese, the birds flew off and landed on the water not far from the shore, Matese went charging after them hit the water and was shocked, she never went in water ever again, I was so upset that she was introduced to water that way, she wouldn't even go in the kiddie pool, Schnae and Matese were inseparable, but not even Schnae padding around in the lake or the pool could entice Matese in the water. My adopted boy was 2 1/2 when I got him, he is not crazy for the big pool, I'm still working with him on that lol, he's 7 yo now. I wish he would love swimming as my 2 girls did.

Thank you. What a wonderful post. Now I miss your girls too!

My two girls have been swimming since they were young. Since I got both of them in the cooler weather they didn't get introduced to the pool until the following spring. It is a real lifesaver for us as it is hard for them to walk far in the heat and the pool gives them some exercise.They have boogie boards to rest on between swims across the pool, they swim to the steps and climb out when they have had enough.They took to the water very quickly, my Wheaten never got the hang of it and my DD's larger yorkie didn't mind the pool but would sink so we had to hold her.

Love hearing about all your babies!! Frisbee girl - love her story and her nickname!!

The closest mine ever got to a large body of water is the bath tub. Haha... Wish we had a pool.

Kajon acquired her nick name from camping, she wouldn't go anywhere without carrying her frisbee lol, such a sweet lil girl she was. Yet at home she would go for her walks just fine. Such quirky ways these lil yorkies have lol.

Yorkies on a boogie board, AND they swim to the steps to get out. That would be heaven.

Thank you for posting.

LOL---KatysMom

Did you have a small sized frisbee, or was it standard size?

Enough said.

LOL.

Any body of water.... Jackson is in it. Well, except the bath. He HaTES the bath.

I'd say he's always been naturally gravitated towards water. But I helped pursue it and encouraged him to jump etc. He's a food hound so I often used food rewards. His fav toy is by far the ChuckIt bumper.

Chasing ducks.

https://www.facebook.com/actionjacks...4590514470080/

Some more videos:
https://www.facebook.com/actionjacks...3367509592382/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMV2VrK2Q7k

He still doesn't prefer to jump in off the side- he needs a raft or a float first to jump on THEN he gets in the water... lol. But he lays on the step all the time by himself voluntarily.

I find a vest gives a lot of dogs confidence! Many don't like when their head goes under and the vest provides extra support that makes them feel more at ease.

Do you think she was turned off by the cold water? We don't have too many ducks here is the heat of summer--lol.

She looks precious in that vest; it is bright.

Ohhhh! Great pics. The videos are priceless.

Now that is a swimmer! Thank you.

Standard size, Kajon weighed 13 Lbs, I had one made out of rawhide that didn't get bite marks on it that causes bleeding, it was made special for dogs, I would think they have improved them today . The regular plastic ones would have lots of bite marks on it and caused her mouth to bleed.

Piper looks so cute in her vest, I love the color, Cody has one in orange. I keep him on a retractable leash then walk in the water, he will swim out to me, but is faster to get back on solid grounds lol.

YT DBlain has a Yorkie that does Dock Diving!

Oh my, dock diving! Suspect that yorkie loves the water!

Just picturing one of these little ones walking to the end of a dock has my head spinning.

We also have another member, gemi that has a yorkie Razzle that competes in dock diving. It just takes my breath away to see these wee lil pups leaping off these docks. So fantastic to show a yorkie is not "just" a yappy lap dog, but can do things big dogs can do. They are just fearless.

Amazing!