MP_ Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Hi Everyone, I have just got a new maltese pup, she's 9 1/2 weeks old and I've had her home with me for almost 2 weeks. So far I haven't left her outside by herself, because I have an unsecured pool. As in, there's no fence around it, only my boundary fence, which is very secure. I was just wondering on ideas about leaving her outside alone. I presume it's better to teach her about the pool and where the steps are rather than teach her not to go near it? Would it just be better if I continue to leave her inside when I go out? I would eventually like to get a doggy door put in though, so she has more freedom? When I was little my parents had a dog in the same house and they never had any problems with the pool. He spent a lot of time outside alone. Any advice would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seita Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Hi Everyone,I have just got a new maltese pup, she's 9 1/2 weeks old and I've had her home with me for almost 2 weeks. So far I haven't left her outside by herself, because I have an unsecured pool. As in, there's no fence around it, only my boundary fence, which is very secure. I was just wondering on ideas about leaving her outside alone. I presume it's better to teach her about the pool and where the steps are rather than teach her not to go near it? Would it just be better if I continue to leave her inside when I go out? I would eventually like to get a doggy door put in though, so she has more freedom? When I was little my parents had a dog in the same house and they never had any problems with the pool. He spent a lot of time outside alone. Any advice would be appreciated. I am in the same boat as you but I have an adult dog so haven't really worried too much about her with the pool. But with a puppy I'd probably be a bit more careful. I guess the question is whether you want to let you dog in the pool or not. If you are going to let it in then teach it how to get in and out and swim etc. If you aren't going to let the dog use the pool maybe you could set up a run or fence off an area of the backyard away from the pool where you can put the dog when you're out? I'm looking at getting a new puppy soon and will be having a pen set up for it when I'm out as I don't want my dogs to use the pool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clyde Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 Im paranoid about my pool and for that reason my Shihtzu doesn't have access while I'm not here as she can fit through the pool fence. Personally I wouldn't leave your little one out unsupervised. Cats are very agile and one of mine has still managed to fall in the pool three times! I would also put a marker near the pool stairs, such as a statue or large pot plant. You will need to teach her where the steps are should she ever fall in as she will not be able to get out on the edge. I threw my Stafford in several times last week until she got where the stairs pets. Could you build a run going from the house? So that she can go inside and outside when home alone. Or better yet, fence your pool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clyde Posted January 7, 2009 Share Posted January 7, 2009 I am in the same boat as you but I have an adult dog so haven't really worried too much about her with the pool. A regular DOL'er lost their adult dog in a pool I threw my Rotti in last week just to be sure he knew where the deep end stair was too. He got caught up in the barracuda hose. I dont even want to know what would have happened had I not been able to untangle him. He couldnt get out at the sides when he tried. Thankfully he still listened to me calling and went around to the shallow end steps. I don't think you can ever be complacent. It seems having a pool is more of a curse than a pleasure, I know mine has given me many grey hairs! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MP_ Posted January 8, 2009 Author Share Posted January 8, 2009 thanks for the advice, I was planning on putting her in the pool and teaching her where the steps are so that if she does fall in she can find her way out. I never even thought about the hose! What a terrible thought. Unfortunately I can't afford to get a fence at the moment, but I guess that's all I can do really. She does spend most of her time inside and only goes outside when I'm out there too, lucky for her I like to be outside a lot during summer I was thinking of blocking off part of the yard for her to be in, but it doesn't really fit in with my doggy door idea. As the back door is around the side of the house which is hard to block off, which means she couldn't come and go as she pleases. I guess she'll just have to stay inside when no one is home. Is keeping her inside all the time bad for her? I have no qualms with her staying inside but I always felt like dogs should spend as much time outside as they can enjoying smelling things and chasing birds? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clyde Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 I don't think it's bad for them. I work from home so my dogs are inside alot. So long as she still gets walked and fresh air she will be fine. It beats a drowned dog and you will be able to relax knowing she is safe. People have dogs in units with no health repercussions. I do agree that it's good for dogs to be outside chasing flies and digging holes in the sunshine but she can do that on weekends or when you win lotto for the pool fence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Midol Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 All 3 of my dogs and Axle knew how to get out of the pool, but Axle is probably the only one I'd have ever trusted to lock in the pool area, even then, only if I could see the pool. Just very risky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corvus Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 We have a Skamper Ramp, although I don't think it is as effective as they claim. It didn't save the gecko that fell in! :'( Also, Penny won't use it properly. She doesn't trust the way it floats. She will go to it every time we put her in because it looks like a place to get out, but when she gets there she clings to the side closest to the edge of the pool and gets stuck. So we put the ramp next to the deep end stairs and piled some pavers and bricks in so she could stand on them and get out with the help of the ramp. She can do it, although she finds it hard given her arthritis. I'm worried about her as her eyesight is going. My aunty lost their old dog when she drowned in their fish pond. She couldn't see very well anymore. So Penny gets the run of the house and the yard in the hopes that she will spend most of her time inside if she has the choice. We tried putting her inside all the time and she grew to dislike it. We are fencing the pool eventually, though. Ours is so close to the house we can't put a fence between it and the house. We have part of the backyard fenced off from the pool, and that's where Kivi stays, but Penny barks all day if she's stuck in there and drives the neighbours mad. Kivi hasn't had pool training because he thinks he breathes through his bellybutton and panics if you put him in the water. He's not gonna learn where to get out if he thinks he's drowning. So he has his safe bit of the yard. He fell in once when he was a puppy and is very careful around the pool. He only has access to it when we are at home. I think you can also get little stairs to help animals out of pools. If you can't find them from pool places, try boating places. Or you can also get a solid cover for the pool. The ones I have seen are strong enough for children to run on. I expect they are very expensive, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skip Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Corvus, your line about Kivi thinking he must breathe thru his belly button made me laugh out loud. Really sums up how some dogs react to water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garden Girl Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 I would never leave my dogs in the pool area unattended and have puppy mesh around the pool fence as an extra barrier. (Where are you btw - arent pool fences compulsory everywhere) Both my dogs have fallen in when I've been in the pool area - they stand right on the very edge to drink the water and have slipped - or try to get a bug in the water or whatever. I was going to buy a skamper ramp but saw one in the shop and thought they looked really flimsy - its basically core flute isnt it - figured I could make one if I really wanted to. But - if OP is really concerned do the thing about getting the dog to know where the steps are and maybe invest in something like a skamper ramp down the other end so the dog has more than one place to get out of the pool. When my older dog gets put in he STILL tries to get out at the nearest edge rather than go to the steps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
corvus Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 You haveta train them where to get out. And they have to be calm enough in the water that they aren't panicking to learn. We have the large dogs Skamper Ramp and it doesn't seem very flimsy to me. I've heard that you should put a flag or something above the way out of the pool as dogs look up when they are swimming, not straight ahead. At least the SR is white, so attracts attention. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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