Corgi won't swim

My husband and I are looking for any tips on how to get Maggie our two year old pem to become more water savy. Maggie loves playing in her own little pool with the water filled half way but the moment you get her in her life jacket and slowly introduce her to the regular swimming pool she becomes a ball of nerves and will only stay in for a brief moment. We have gingerly coaxed her back in but she will not come unless we hold her for the first few minutes and once in she only paddles with her front paws and uses her butt and hinde legs as a rutter to get her self to the steps and out as quickly as possible.

We see other corgis who love the water and pretty well jump in but not our Maggie. She has never had a bad water experience that we are aware of and loves the beach to run in but not swim. Any ideas on how we can help her overcome her fears and make her more water savy?

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Comment by Crystal Haslip on August 15, 2010 at 10:07am: Thanks Lynne and Beth for your input, it is greatly appreciated. When we first got Maggie two years ago she was introduced to the pool and actually enjoyed it but with the weather not being as warm as summer should be we didn't spend much time in the water that year. We are heading out to the beach today and are going to let Maggie run in along the waters edge and slowly see if she is willing to go out further. I'll let you know how it goes.

Comment by Lynne Taupier on August 15, 2010 at 12:42am: I've had 2 Pems. My first one loved the water, but did not like swimming. She would wade in water and even lay down in it, but needed to touch bottom to feel comfortable. My current one HATES touching bottom; she loves the act of moving those little legs I guess. Different strokes for different Corgi folk I guess. I've just enjoyed taking them both to the lake and getting them some exercise--wading or swimming. Just have fun with Maggie and keep us posted!

Comment by Beth on August 14, 2010 at 11:35pm: I have one that swims like a fish and one that prefers to wade. I tried to get my wader to walk out further tonight and actually swim, and he started whining anxiously so I just let it go.

If you really want a swimmer, like everything else it's best to get them in as puppies and I wish we had done that with Jack. I've managed to coax him in to swim once or twice, but he does it to please me and it clearly distresses him. You might try getting her someplace with a gradual slope and see it you can get her to come out on her own to a place where she only needs to swim briefly, but some dogs just don't seem to like it. Next time we get a puppy (may it be many years down the road!) we will be sure to get it in the water during the first 14 weeks of life (the socialization window), because our swimmer is a blast to watch. Poor Jack, he's like the big kid in the shallow end when we go. *sigh* But that's what he likes, so we just let him wade around and enjoy himself.

Comment by Crystal Haslip on August 14, 2010 at 11:11pm: Thanks for the suggestion Carla, she has seen other dogs playing at the beach but is more content to running along the sand then join in. Perhaps it is in her best interest if we revist this approach.

Comment by Carla on August 14, 2010 at 11:06pm: Have you tried getting her around other dogs who are swimming? She might be more likely to hop in if she sees other dogs swimming and enjoying themselves.