Boating Pet Articles

It's A Dog's Life (Jacket!)

The last thing we want is for Fido to fall overboard, creating panic onboard, and a potential safety nightmare. Fitting him for a life jacket is easy – really! – if you follow a few simple tips. Click here to read more

The Pup Cup - Bravery, bribery, and barking—all in a day’s work for thesecontestants

This is definitely not your ordinary talent contest. "Border collies do it with a herd—vote for Kylie!" reads one sign held by a contestant's companion. A dreadlock-wigged entourage, save for one member in a blonde wig, accompanies a natural-blonde contestant who originates from the small island of Culebra off Puerto Rico. And a third competitor, about the same size as the tiny trophy he gets to take home just for participating, tries to bribe the judges by presenting them with a fresh lobster. Click here to read more

Salty Paws - Do Cats Make Good Mariners?

Jean and Garret Mulder have, Skipper, their fluffy Bichon Frise aboard their 40-foot Nova, Boat of Us, and their pooch seems to be perfectly at home, deporting himself circumspectly. Dogs are fairly common boating companions, but what about cats? Do they make good mariners?

Ed and Carol Huff aboard Vera Segunda, a 32-foot Grand Banks, wrote, "It feels as though everything revolves around Pearl, the boat cat. She is most entertaining. At anchor she spends the evenings running around the decks fearlessly. In a full run she will leave the bow and race to the dinghy on the stern, then leap up onto the boom and walk back to the cabin top. When the dinghy is in the water behind us, she will leap from the boat to the dinghy and snuggle down in the bow. She likes to walk on the handrails around the boat, which scares the daylights out of us. We know one day she will slip in the early morning dew and get a good dunking. Click here to read more

Hurricane - Are Your Pets Prepared?

WASHINGTON — One important lesson from Hurricane Charley is that storm paths are unpredictable, and many people in the direct path were not prepared to meet their pets’ needs, perhaps because they did not think the storm would affect them. And, as HSUS disaster experts discovered, many families evacuated their homes but left their pets behind. As Hurricane Frances nears the East Coast, The HSUS urges families with pets to prepare for their pets needs now in case the storms hit their community. Click here to read more

Ahoy, Fluffy How to Keep Pets Safely Afloat

Ed Johnson of Washington knows from experience that waxed fiberglass decks and running dogs don't mix. His 125-pound Great Dane, Isabella, made quite a splash when she plunged unexpectedly into the Potomac. Isabella now sports a bright yellow life jacket whenever she is topside on his 35-foot sailboat. Click here to read more

How Safe is That Doggie in the Water?

If it’s true that dog owners tend to look and think like their pets, then canines must be safety- conscious indeed. How else would you explain the sudden popularity of life jackets for dogs? PFDs, pet flotation devices — most often for dogs but also for cats and a few other animals — were among the hottest-selling items of boating equipment this year. Even as this boating season winds down, there is every indication that sales are still wagging the dog. Click Here to read more

Dogs Trained to Find People - Even Underwater

Allison Batdorff - Billings Gazette Wyoming Bureau Criminals, beware: Throwing off the bloodhounds by wading across the river doesn't work. Bailey the Airedale knows that trick. So does Windla the German shepherd, Buddy the golden retriever and several shades of Labradors. With practice, these dogs can find people hiding at the bottom of a lake. They are doing that in a search-dog course conducted Tuesday and today in Cody. Organized by Park County handler K.T. Irwin, the course gives search dogs training to find people, dead or alive. Click here to read more