I have a dog problem

I'm trying to figure out how to get him into my dingy without picking him up, and I have no clue. He's about 90 lbs (big dog).

I have seen people design and build ramps that go from the aft gunwale parallel to the transom down to a swim step. Dog walks down the ramp onto the swim step and jumps into the dinghy. Does the reverse getting back aboard. The trick is to design it so that you can still have access to the swim step, too.

If you have a mast and boom you might be able to rig a sling for your dog, get him used to being suspended in it, and then lower and raise him from the dinghy.

A 90 pound dog is not an easy (or possible) thing to pick up and lower down to a swim step or lift back up from a swimstep. Our dogs have all been about 50 pounds plus our transom is not all that high. So it's a pretty easy lift down and boost back up.

I'm thinking your best bet will be some sort of ramp you can attach to your transom gunwale when you need it and stow it somewhere when you don't.

I have a similar situation and completely sympathize. Fortunately we have a Beagle so am going to try a dog life vest with handle and see how it goes.

I can't imagine 90 lbs. Good luck and please let us know what you come up with.

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I can't imagine boating with a dog, while others can't imagine boating without one.

There are some ramp and sling suggestions in this thread.

http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s53/hello-long-island-ny-9228.html#post140985

A davit with winch and sling are probably your best bet.....some boats and boat operations are not easy with dogs unless you are willing to take some dramatic measures.

Does the "little" fella have fun boating?

markpierce said:

I can't imagine boating with a dog, while others can't imagine boating without one.

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I can imagine it because many boating friends have dogs and we see and hear about it all the time.

After being dogless for many years, my wife has decided that she needs a new dog. She has picked her out and put a deposit on her. I tried to talk her out of it, explaining how it would make boating more difficult, but she feels she has all the answers.

It's a Yorkie and should grow to no more than six pounds or so so getting it into a dingy should not be a problem. She plans to train it to use pads so we won't have to take it to shore to do its business.

We shall see.

markpierce said:

I can't imagine boating with a dog, while others can't imagine boating without one.

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I'm the same. Especially if you are cruising vs day trips. You end up being the crew for the dog, the dog drives the boat's agenda. We've seen it time and time again. Even those who manage to set up a doggy "head" and train the dog to use it...the crew still cleans up after and most dogs still need to be walked on a regular basis head or no. I think of all the times I have seen someone taking the dinghy out in miserable weather to some muddy marsh or distant beach to "walk" the dog.

But dogs are an emotional substitute for children in many people's lives, I get that. We love dogs and always had dogs before we went cruising, but when we did, one of the first things we did was to give the dog to one of our kids (grown up). By the way, for little dogs, like the Jack Russell/Corgi mix mutt we had last, the lifejacket with the handle worked great and he liked wearing it.

caltexflanc said:

By the way, for little dogs, like the Jack Russell/Corgi mix mutt we had last, the lifejacket with the handle worked great and he liked wearing it.

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Thanks for that feedback George. Bodes well for our Beagle.

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We found boarding our yellow lab was the answer, he got seasick and had the runs from stealing boating snacks and drinks.

Greetings,
A lab counter surfing? Naw! Say it isn't so.....Well, I never....hahahaha.

deancrenshaw55 said:

I'm trying to figure out how to get him into my dingy without picking him up, and I have no clue. He's about 90 lbs (big dog).

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With a 90-pound dog, you should be thankful that your boat has a cockpit and not an elevated deck. Build a transom gate and your dog can just walk in and out.

Our last boat required boarding from a three rung side hung ladder. When our Lab was young he had no trouble embarking or debarking (pun intended). When he got older, we had to buy him a new boat with a swim platform and transom gate. He loves it, although he sometimes falls off/in when he gets a little too zealous on anti-gull duty.

RT: We have a saying: "Faster than a Labrador Retriever can clean off an unattended countertop"

deancrenshaw55 said:

I'm trying to figure out how to get him into my dingy without picking him up, and I have no clue. He's about 90 lbs (big dog).

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One costly solution that everyone would benefit from would be to put a door in the transom like dwhatty has. Sometimes referred to as "tuna doors" by the sport fishing crowd. How well does your cockpit drain?

We have had an aluminum step fabricated from our sundeck to the swim platform. for about $1K installed. The steps are at a 45 degree angle with 11 inch rise per tread.

We have friends with a 53 DeFever POC. There is no cockpit and a long way to the swim step. They use this with a 125# shepard and the dingy davit. Also works great at at a foreign dock.
Rappel Sling - Now Your Dog Goes Anywhere.

Vyndance said:

We have friends with a 53 DeFever POC. There is no cockpit and a long way to the swim step. They use this with a 125# shepard and the dingy davit. Also works great at at a foreign dock.
Rappel Sling - Now Your Dog Goes Anywhere.

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You have the correct answer. Garhauer in CA makes an outboard motor crane that is $300. It will work great for a 90# dog if used with the sling mentioned above.

Garhauer Marine Hardware -5887135

Our boat is dog friendly.





PS - Merlin doesn't shed or get motion sick...he goes where we go.

deancrenshaw55 said:

I'm trying to figure out how to get him into my dingy without picking him up, and I have no clue. He's about 90 lbs (big dog).

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How handy are you with tools and fiberglass? You might want to consider cutting a transom door on your boat. Obviously no easy chore but some of the big sport-fishers have that. 90 pounds is a big boy. Ours is 80. Fortunately he's a good jumper. For now.

Paws Aboard Doggy Boat Ladder ?

Keep him lean, better for hips and agility. You don't have too much of a distance to go, a transom door would be clean looking and maybe convenient for you. There are also many diff davits, small 125 lbs and maybe removable. You could also make your own block and tackle style to save $.

I guess I could chime in here. When we went looking for a Trawler a few years ago, I originally had a traditional Tri-Cab in mind, but wanted something with more Cockpit space.
Also, Dog access was a prime factor and the Tri-Cabs would not handle that well at all.
When the Sedan came along, she was pretty much a "slam-dunk". I got lots of cockpit space and a Transom "doggie-door".

I cannot imagine boating with a dog, or plural, without a Transom door.

By the following year, I had hacked together that "portable" Doggie swim ramp that allows her to come and go into the water on her own. She actually much prefers to be "In the Water" than "On the Water", and barks insanely at the Bow Waves.

Dinghy access on the other hand is still a bit challenging. We plan to conquer that one this season.

Inflatable works for us

I have a 34 Californian with a swim platform. The dingy is a 10 foot coastal and we haul the bow of the inflatable way up high on the transom. Then it is an easy one step onto the inflatable bow and an even smaller step up over the rail. We have our 12 year old lab wear a life vest with the handle on top that allows us to help him out a little. Our lab is about 70 pounds.

I wish I could wrap our retriever in duct tape to contain the shedding fur that my wife gripes about.

rwidman said:

I can imagine it because many boating friends have dogs and we see and hear about it all the time.

After being dogless for many years, my wife has decided that she needs a new dog. She has picked her out and put a deposit on her. I tried to talk her out of it, explaining how it would make boating more difficult, but she feels she has all the answers.

It's a Yorkie and should grow to no more than six pounds or so so getting it into a dingy should not be a problem. She plans to train it to use pads so we won't have to take it to shore to do its business.

We shall see.

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My neighbor has Yorkies..... they just sit there and bark at nothing when unattended outside.....yip,yip,yip,yip all day long. Vile little dogs that are completely out of control. Just wait until you leave the dog in the boat to go out for dinner...... your neighbors will love you. Good luck with that.

Sorry, I am sure some Yorkies are mellow and well behaved. Just not my experience with the breed.

Adelaide said:

My neighbor has Yorkies..... they just sit there and bark at nothing when unattended outside.....yip,yip,yip,yip all day long. Vile little dogs that are completely out of control. Just wait until you leave the dog in the boat to go out for dinner...... your neighbors will love you. Good luck with that.

Sorry, I am sure some Yorkies are mellow and well behaved. Just not my experience with the breed.

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Ours is ok. Yaps at the door,sometimes at the retriever. Mostly I scowl at her when she gets too wound up and that seems to work, but not a random yapper. Smarter dog than I thought when we first got her and my girls were cooing over her.

Adelaide said:

.. they just sit there and bark at nothing when unattended outside.....yip,yip,yip,yip all day long. Vile little dogs that are completely out of control. ..............

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You would say that about this little girl?



How could you?

Seriously, we have had Yorkies in the past and that hasn't been our experience. Dogs of all breeds can be a nuisance if not raised and treated right. There's a local crabber who takes his large mutt with him every day and the dog barks constantly.

So my dog problem is finding a PFD (DFD?) to fit her. Right now she weighs about 1 1/2 lb but she should be around 5 lb full grown.

Limit myself to stuffed animals as I can't be a good "parent" to a live animal, being away from home frequently.

rwidman said:

Dogs of all breeds can be a nuisance if not raised and treated right.

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You're quite right Ron, the problem is never the dog. Responsible dog owners know how much interaction, socialization, and exercise they require daily. My mom owns a Yorkie that never barks annoyingly, even when left alone at home.

I appreciate folks like Mark that understand absentee lifestyles are not conducive with being a pet owner.

Adelaide said:

My neighbor has Yorkies..... they just sit there and bark at nothing when unattended outside.....yip,yip,yip,yip all day long. Vile little dogs that are completely out of control. Just wait until you leave the dog in the boat to go out for dinner...... your neighbors will love you. Good luck with that.

Sorry, I am sure some Yorkies are mellow and well behaved. Just not my experience with the breed.

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Sorry to disagree. We have two Yorkies, a 4 lb and a 14 lb ( yes,a big boy, all Yorkie.) Both have been raised on the boat as we are liveaboards, don't bark unless someone comes on our boat -- good guard dogs. Never have to take them to shore if we are anchored. It's about training. My pups may not be the best trained but they aren't yippers--- and they don't bark when we leave.

And Cody loves to ride in the dinghy.....a good boat puppy.