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Since the weather is taking its toll on us for our nightly bike rides, I was seeking alternatives.

We have a pool here that dog owners can take there dogs swimming ( its indoors)

Any pros and cons on the issue.

How long should they go when starting out , and how do you progress the times(increments)

Thanks in advance

I'm not sure a dog can swim for too long.

My vet does surgery and has a really cool treadmill that runs inside of a pool of water that they use to rehab dogs after surgery. They can run it flat or incline it. A lot of service dogs here use it in the winter. You may want to call around and see if you can locate something like that too. Here is a little picture of it but not very good.

http://www.shakervet.com/modalities.html

I beg to differ, a dog if properly conditioned can swim for quite a long time, just as long as a human.

I swim my dogs from mid /end of May until end of September in the Delaware river against the current. The dogs have no leash or collar on; all I take is a tug to keep them motivated and focused. I go myself in the water so they have a distance target and they swim against the current of the river. At the beginning of the season I start out with about 15 min , by the end of the season they last as long as 75 minutes. I do it 2-3 times a week. Most important is after the swim excercise, a canine correct meal, to replenish the used up energy. IMO only the raw food diet can supply this with lots of raw meat and meaty bones. .....after a swimming day the dogs sleep really well.

We swim our guys too. They love it and it is easy on the joints. One of them goes deaf in the water though because she loves to swim so much. We make her wear a life vest and swim her on leash but let her swim until she comes out of the water on her own.

I think it is great excercise and the dogs love being able to cool off in the warmer months.

My dogs all swim for fun and conditioning.

I have one dog that swims year around, he will break ice if I let him. He can and has swam non-stop for over an hour, feet never touched the ground, and he was not just paddling around, he was beating the water up and having a grand ole time. We used to take him out on her pontoon boat and he had his own floating ramp to get back in when in deep water.....we'd park the boat for 3-4 hours and he never stopped swimming and jumping off the boat.....he take a break every so often and hang on his dock.

My 15 month old male does 45 minutes of non-stop retreives in water 3-5 times a week, we stop becuase I have 3 other dogs to work in......we'll see if he continues when the water is cold.

Swimming is a great exercise for dogs, it does not beat their joints up but does condition them and build muscles.

I'm totally with you man. My pup started swimming at 6 months and by the time he was 10 he could be in the water for several hours swimming with me, and you are absolutely right about the food, there is only one kind of food that is good for your dog and it's raw diet. Cheers.