Some dogs are natural born swimmers, and some have a bit more difficulty with swimming techniques, but (how) can a life jacket contribute to my dog's swimming experience? We've put together some pros and cons about it!
Writing: Jana Gams, DVM, CCRP
I get a lot of questions regarding the use of a life jacket for your dog when going swimming, so I just thought I’d put together some facts from my experience, and help you decide!
Is a life jacket truly needed for my healthy dog to be able to swim?
No. Some dogs are natural born swimmers, and some have a bit more difficulty with swimming techniques, but dogs do know how to swim without the help of a life jacket. Especially if you are only enjoying a short time by the water (lake, river, sea), mainly just playing around in the shallows, a life vest is certainly not the most essential piece of gear to have.
Can a life jacket contribute to the swimming experience and training output?
YES. Especially if you want to spend more time in the water with your dog! No matter how good a swimmer your dog is, they can all benefit from the use of a life jacket. Let’s take a look at how it works:
- Dogs without vests fatigue sooner. By supporting the dog underneath the chest, the vest takes off a fair amount of the dog’s body weight, allowing him to swim for longer distances before starting to tire. This means we can enjoy more time swimming with our dogs, and spend swimming holidays without having to worry about whether the dog will be able to enjoy activities until the end of holidays or have to forgo them due to exhaustion.
- Using a life vest can also prevent your dog from suffering from muscle soreness due to extreme exhaustion which might occur if your dog swims for a longer period of time or over many days.
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A life vest improves the dog’s swimming technique. No matter how good a swimmer your dog is, a life vest will certainly enhance his swimming technique. Support under the chest and trunk will contribute to a better body position:
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head held nicely above the water
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straight back
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allowing front and back legs to work optimally, and propel the dog forward, instead of splashing and struggling to keep the body up in the first place
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keeping the back end higher up instead of sinking down. Only a back end held up with a straight back will allow your dog to move forward in a nice technique. Having the rear end deep down below the surface will only make the dog swim in a weird position with uncomfortable angles, causing possible soreness or even cramps. Yikes!
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Swimming with a good technique will also mean better training output for muscle work!
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Safety. A practical handle at the top of a life vest allows us to help, or hold the dog, or pick him out from the water - sometimes they have a hard time climbing out from the water, or maybe we want to go SUPing, kayaking or sailing with our dogs - then wearing a life jacket should really be a must!
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Positive experience for dogs lacking in confidence. With the help of a vest we can support and thus help to encourage dogs that are not naturally water freaks but may be a bit reserved about swimming. Having a good experience will definitely help with his future swimming lessons!
There are also some other conditions where I truly feel the need to use life vests, simply because if we want to work on strengthening our dogs, we need to provide safety, and help with the optimal swimming technique!
- Dogs that need to regain some strength due to past injury or other condition
- Sporting dogs for improving endurance and cardiovascular health. They also have a bit of resistance work with swimming in a life vest ;)
- Hydrotherapy sessions in the pool
Are there any negative sides of using a life vest?

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Decreased dog’s balance work: the vest helps at stabilization of the dog in water, meaning they have to use less effort and balance to keep the body in position. Only a small disadvantage for stability training purposes, but we could as well put this fact under advantages for some dogs, who do need help at stabilization.
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Losing hydrodynamics: the fact that the life vest creates a less hydrodynamic environment actually adds in some resistance load to swimming. But this might not necessarily be a bad thing either - it can add in some extra work for muscle training!
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Causing possible restrictions to shoulder and hip range of motion: if our life vest is not of proper shape, or size for our dog, it can cause some restrictions to movement.
Actually, if you are using a good life vest perfectly fitting your dog’s body, there are only advantages to be found in using it!
How can I know if a particular vest is optimal for my dog?
1. First of all, the vest should fit snugly around the dog’s chest and thorax. Having too much “air” underneath it at certain parts might mean the vest is not the correct shape or size for your dog, as it might shift around the dog’s body, or create negative effects on particular body parts.
2. It should leave the shoulder region free. The vest should not cover the shoulder region in a way that would restrict the shoulder joint’s range of motion. Aim for vests that are designed to leave the shoulders out and open, to get the best swimming movement of front legs.
3. It should leave the hind end region free. Pick vests that cover a shorter part of the belly – because first, it will probably create restrictions to the hind end work! If the knees are hitting the material, the dog will not be able to use a full range of motion in his hips, knees, and hocks. So a good vest would bellow only cover the sternum, and not also the soft belly. And secondly, covering the whole dog’s lower back (both on top and at the bottom) will not promote spinal and trunk muscles to engage and strengthen during swimming. When picking a suitable vest for your dog concentrate on the reasonably short length of the part that goes under the belly; the length of the back part on top itself does not restrict movements and thus only affects individual preferences and needs (longer back vests support more weight and might fit better to some dogs).
Keep in mind each dog has individual needs. I hope this post will help you with finding the best swimming vest for your dog!
If you want to read more about how to start with swimming, and how to turn it into a good workout - check High-intensity swimming for dogs article by Havohravo.com
Check similar article in German language by our vet colleague Imke Niewöhner Schwimmweste für Hunde – nützlich oder Mode-Gag?
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