Infants on a boat.

[Conrad]

In Canada there are no certified life jackets available for anyone under 20 pounds. Which of course makes life challenging when you have a young family or friends with wee ones. In our case we have new grandchildren coming into our lives at what seems like an alarming rate, so what do we do?

To date we have only had the little ones on board for short day trips in calm seas but I am nervous.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

 

[psneeld]

In Canada there are no certified life jackets available for anyone under 20 pounds. Which of course makes life challenging when you have a young family or friends with wee ones. In our case we have new grandchildren coming into our lives at what seems like an alarming rate, so what do we do?

To date we have only had the little ones on board for short day trips in calm seas but I am nervous.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

While not perfect...I think the USCG does "approve" infant size PFDs...

Full Throttle Infant Nylon Life Jacket / PFD

 

[High Wire]

We used a Sterns infant vest for my daughter when she was just 3 months. That included mom wearing a Type III underway too. If something bad happened, moms sole responsibility was keeping the baby (only 1) safe.

 

[MVNoPlans]

My daughter is now two, but we bought one of these when she was 5 months:
Discovery Infant PFD: PFDs and Life Jackets | Free Shipping at L.L.Bean

 

[Ron T]

As Captain you had better know each childs location prior to leaving the dock and have an adult assigned to that child while on board. too many children have been left behind in a sinking/fire episode , then looked for after with sad results.

 

[High Wire]

I think the OP's point was that these are not certified in Canada. I thought USCG approved was ok in Canada or is that only for US boats visiting CA?

Ok, found this:
Safety Equipment Requirements

Foreign pleasure craft (pleasure craft that are licensed or registered in a country other than Canada) need to comply with equipment requirements of the country in which the vessel is usually kept.
If you are not a resident of Canada and are using a pleasure craft licensed or registered in Canada, all of the required safety equipment must meet Canadian safety requirements. However, you may opt to bring your own PFD for your own personal use.
For more information, consult the Small Vessel Regulations.

 

[LaBomba]

We have had the same problem. We now have 8 grandchildren and had all but the baby on board this summer. As the op has stated there are NO Canadian approved infant life jackets and so we opted to wait until next year to take her on her first voyage. To spend $45 or more US ($70 or more Canadian with shipping and duties) for an unapproved US jacket to use once or twice seemed like a poor decision.

 

[Conrad]

Thanks for your responses.
As has been stated, there are no approved under 20# life jackets available for use in Canada by residents, period.
I think what this discussion has done for me is to harden up my rules re allowing any under 20 pounders on board while underway.
Which is problematic as my daughters seem to be popping them out at a frequency that precludes them from going for years to come! Must be the water.

 

[Pura Vida]

Not sure about the brand the admiral got for the twins, but I love it when 3 generations are on the boat.

 

[Northern Spy]

There is no legal requirement to have PFDs for little sailors under 20lbs in Canada, hence no TC approved ones.

MEC carries a few interesting designs for infants.