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Beemo and Dino

A while back I decided to see if our dog, Dino, would like to try swimming in our pool. Since from past experience with my brother’s corgis I knew he would be top heavy, I simply held him and let him kick.

As soon as his little legs hit the water they started moving out of instinct or maybe survival. Maybe it was fear because my husband said our dog’s face seemed panicked. So his first go at swimming only lasted a minute or so.

Dino’s relatives live with my brother, Billy, who breeds them where they live in southern Ohio. Their dogs live inside with them and a couple have retired from their breeding lives. One of their first corgis, Beemo, loves their swimming pool.

Last summer when we visited them Beemo was placed on his sturdy pool floatie where he stood and waited for someone to throw him a ball. He would hit it back to you with his nose. It was both funny and amazing.

A couple times I threw the ball too far to the right or not close enough and he fell into the water. That’s when I learned because of their big heads, some corgis aren’t the best swimmers. My brother scooped him up quickly and he was OK and ready for more play.

I was thinking maybe if I got Dino a life jacket he could swim in the pool, too. He does enjoy his baby pool when we fill it up for him. Perhaps we could get a sturdy float like Beemo’s and see if he wants to play ball. It might be in his genes, after all.

I’ll have to check online and see what the pet stores carry. For now, I am trying to rebalance my pool this week. I thought I was doing so well this summer, keeping it from turning green. Well, mother nature had different ideas, and now I am trying to make it nice again using the chlorine shock treatments and something called algaecide. Wish me luck because it is too hot to not swim!

Hanson can be reached at shanson@timesleaderonline.com.

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