Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

We have a boat access cottage and are looking for a new boat. We need a boat that is easily accessible for my 2 aging dogs (Newfoundland & St. Bernard). I do not want to start having to lift them into our 18ft old bow rider. We need room to carry all our gear, family and dogs. We love tubing and want to continue. Our current boat with a 100hp can pull if we only have 2 people in the boat. We often go slow cruising on the lake just to hang and relax. Is there anything out there that will fit the bill. We have our boat docked at a marina. We live in Ontario and rarely do we get bad water conditions.
Any suggestions.

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

Pontoon would be ideal.

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

Mischief Managed said:

Pontoon would be ideal.

Click to expand...

A 24'-26' pontoon may be a good choice. There are many good steps/ladders available in the 'toon world.
There is also some good power options that have come up in the last few years.

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

my idea of fun tubing is to see how much air the tuber gets when I whip the line and they crash.
there are high power/speed pon& tritoons that would do it great but are $$$.
A boat with a good swim platform on back and some sorta dog ladder steps would work too.

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

web search dog ramp for boat

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

toon all the way.... you can easily set up a folding ramp for the side gate... just drop it down on the dock and walk on

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

Mischief Managed said:

Pontoon would be ideal.

Click to expand...

+1 on the toon. My 80 year old father takes "old folks" (older than him) on tours with his pontoon all the time. Just walk right on!. Dogs should love it.

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2TdUBFcDPw

get this one! if you are going to get a pontoon

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

Lake

I have seen more than 1 large dog fall over board. It is VERY VERY tiring on a dog to tread water while the boat circles several times in a breeze. There are folding ramps that bolt on the boat that allow the dog to climb up & into the boat by itself.

Your dogs would weigh a ton with wet hair. I saw 1 teenager jump into the water & hold a Black Pinchers head up while it took 5 or more minutes to get enough people to lift it over the side of a 22' boat.
A full ADULT life jacket on the front body would take the sstruggling efforts out of them in the water. Get the one that forces the head BACKWARD & UPWARD to prevent face down of older styles.

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

I'll add another voice to the "pontoon" suggestion. Many "toons" are rigged to do exactly what you are describing - and you can get 'em in all sizes giving you ample room for the two dogs to load in.

A Newfie and a Bernard -- Get a tri-toon for extra flotation! That's a lotta' dog! I've been hauling Golden Retrievers on boats for years (largest has been a 90#). A life vest for the dogs is a good idea, especially if you struggle getting them on the boat. We're typically not on the water any farther from shore than the dog could easily swim (lakes are long, but no that wide), but hoisting her soggy carcass over the gunwale is a bit of a project sometimes.

Someone else mentioned the dog ramp. There are a bunch of 'em out there, and they can work both as a gangplank onto the boat (if needed) and a ramp coming out of the water. We haven't needed that yet (swim platform has worked for us), but I can see the value in it especially on a pontoon with dogs the size of yours.

Re: Aging dogs..pulling tubes...relaxing? what boat do I get?

Duck & Geese hunters are using the ramps In off shore hunting boats to save the dogs energy on lots / long retrives. Saw it on Tv weeks ago. Makes a lot of sense for the dogs well being.