Swimming Pools and Dogs: A Few Points to Ponder

Many of you seeing the title of this article may laugh at the idea of pools and dogs, but believe it or not for many families out there the dog(s) have just as much say in the pool as the rest of the family does. Just ask my business partner Jim with his two pugs. Heck, sometimes I think those two dogs have more say than any one in Jim’s household…..but I digress. :-)

So let’s take a look at a few common questions we get regarding pools and dogs:

What is the best type of pool for my dog?

First and foremost, vinyl liner is out of the question for most homeowners. For obvious reasons, the liner can tear or get small punctures, which then can lead to major leaking issues and headaches. On the other hand, fiberglass and concrete pools are almost never going to be damaged by dogs and are usually the right choice, depending on the needs of the homeowner. Also, keep in mind that depending on the size of the dog, a decent sized set of steps is important in terms of entry/exit points.

What is the best type of chemical to use in my pool if my dog likes to swim?

Frankly, there just haven’t been many studies on this one in the pool industry, so I’ll just explain what I’ve seen up to this point. Because just about all of our customers (1000+ inground and above ground pools) use salt, and due to the fact that many allow their animals to swim in the pool, we’ve been very pleased to see that salt chlorine generators work very well in conjunction with dogs. Because they produce a low level of natural chlorine, the chemicals aren’t harsh and the salt is easy on the skin. Up to this point, I’ve not had one of our customers say their dog had an adverse reaction to their salt chlorine generator.

Will a Dog Be Hard on My Filter System?

They say a dog is equivalent to about 50 people in the pool at one time. Crazy, huh? Notwithstanding, although their hair and such is harder on a filter system, by no means are they known to do damage either. For example, if you have a cartridge filter on your pool it may mean that you simply have to spray the filter off more often. If you have sand, you may need to backwash more often. But just as with the previous question, I’ve not heard any of our customers complain about how their animals have negatively affected their pool’s filter system.

Well I hope these questions help you dog lovers a little as your consider the process of pool ownership. One thing is for sure—If your dog likes the water, he/she will LOVE pool ownership, and in-turn will not be forced to bath in ice cubes any longer :-)

Happy Swimming,

Marcus Sheridan