Where Did He Learn to Swim

When I first rescued my Lab (Allie), years ago, I took her swimming at Sweetwater State Park. I let her loose in a calm portion of the creek, and she swam like a otter. She was fast with her giant webbed feat and could turn on a dime using her tail as a rudder. She was a natural.

Years later I resued my Golden (Buddy), and took him to a local pond to see if he swam. Buddy loves the water, but was the worst swimming dog I ever saw. He would forget to paddle his rear legs, so his butt would sink and he would start splashing with his front paws. It was funny to watch because he would be snapping and biting at the water he just splashed up in front of him. He was the worst swimming dog I've ever seen (what is more shamful is he's a retriever, a dog designed for the water).

Through the many hikes to rivers, creeks, lakes and ponds one thing stayed the same, Buddy was the worst swimming dog I've seen. This all changed a month ago. On a group hike to Red Top Mountain State Park with Golden Retriever Rescue of Atlanta (GRRA) he started swimming like a champion retriever.

I started wondering how this happened, was he secretly taking swimming lessons while I'm at work? Or, maybe my Lab is teaching him in our bath tub (that would explain why my water bill has gone up).

Last Sunday on anouther group hike with GRRA I verified that Buddy now knows how to swim well. It still baffles me.