I’m not sure how it would work with you swimming for 40 mins. Are you expecting the dog to swim alongside whilst you’re front crawling or kind of expecting it to play in the shallows as you’re head up breast stroke? You need to be able to watch your dog and intervene if needed (other people, dogs or it does a poo or eats or rolls in something grim!)
I’m not sure either, but read about a GR that competed in a swimming race, swam 1.2 miles from Alcatraz to the SF shoreline and placed 72 out of 500 (everyone else was human). So theoretically it should be possible to have a fit GR (probably not show line) swimming alongside you. I’m a strong, but not super fast swimmer, so probably a fair bit slower than anyone taking part in a race. Of course, this would only be an option if the dog enjoys swimming (and not all GRs do, as evidenced by several posters on here). No problem if doesn’t work out, just seemed like a fun thing to do with a water-loving dog. Swimming is also gentle on the joints which would be a plus for any larger / heavier breed. We’re not in the UK and the water temperature in said lake would be around 17-18 degrees in May and October and 21-23 in the summer, so hopefully warm enough for a longer stint in the water.
Just managed to find the article again: https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/san-francisco-ruff-crossing-alcatraz-swim-a-2651559.php
I personally think better have a light dog that you can see is dirty….we went on a long walk with our friends and their black lab and DH was giving both dogs a stroke but did t realise the black lab was covered in fox poo 🤮
Good point, it may be better to know what you’re dealing with so you can at least prevent them from jumping on the sofa covered in some invisible muck. My DH also insists that any potential dog must have ‘a light face’ because apparently that makes them look ‘friendlier’. He’s never had a dog and isn’t a natural with them, but has been absolutely charmed by the neighbours' GR.
If you go ahead I would make sure that you have a good outdoor washing set up for when ddog comes back from walks.
Plus having easily cleaned floors and beds for them. I have labs and I bring them to the back door. Shower them off and then they are shut either in the garden or in the kitchen until they are dry.
Yes, that sounds like very good advice. The floors will all be hardwood and tile with just a few rugs, so easy enough to clean. An outside shower with hot and cold water would certainly be very handy and should be very doable, I’ll look into that. I’d probably put a dog bed in the utility room so they can dry off for a bit in there before being let loose on the rest of the house.
If you're in the UK you do need to be ultra careful about blue-green algae which seems to be on the rise. I've know of dogs dying in the south west and south east from this. And I believe Lake Windermere is full of it. Even if your lake doesn't have it now there's no saying it won't develop there. A dog near us died from licking a dead fish on the lake bank.
Labs spending a long time in water can develop limber tail which causes their tail to hang limp and, although temporary, can be very upsetting for them (at least it has been for two of mine!)
Another thing to watch for with a lab that loves water is that this can make them prone to ear infections. One of ours would happily go right under and pootle around on the river bed. Moisture trapped in their floppy ears creates a perfect environment for infections. Infections then cause them to shake their ears from side to side and this can burst small blood vessels which cause their ear to swell. This then needs an op. If you leave it the ear can become misshapen (cauliflower ear). And scar tissue narrows the ear canal which makes them even more prone to infections.
Thank you, BeadedBubbles, lots of excellent advice there. I knew about cauliflower ear but hadn’t heard of timber tail. Poor babies, sounds really unpleasant, so very good to know.
We’re in Continental Europe fairly close to the Alps. So far, blue-green algae only seems to be a relatively rare problem in very few smaller lakes. Whenever a case does occur, you’ll hear about it in the media and there’ll be warning signs everywhere near the shore. Thankfully the regional governments over here are extremely hot on constantly testing water quality in all the lakes, so hopefully, the risk would be low. But better safe than sorry!