I Turn to this Fine Community for Help

I have a 2 year-old male German Shorthair Pointer.












He's very well behaved, but there's something I'm trying to teach him that I can't find any resources on.

He swims like a fish, and I've taught him to put his head underwater to retrieve a toy - he blows bubbles through his nose as he dips his head into the first step on the pool during the retrieve.

What I'm looking to do is find a way to introduce him to fully submerging for a retrieve, but I can't think of any way to get him to that step without forcing him.

I've seen a couple of different dogs swim underwater on some of those random video shows, and since this dog is comfortable with the water and has webbed feet, he's built for it!!

I've Googled, but have come up with nothing substantive.

I turn to the sharp minds on these boards for additional ideas on how I can teach him the ways of Aquaman.

Thanks

You can try a toy that sinks rather quickly, A dive toy of sorts.

Start with a short shallow distance and work up from there.

Something like this: http://pooltoy.com/divepets.html

Do not force and start with a few min at a time.

Good luck

I second Steed77 and will add that it might help if could work beside a dog that already knows how to do this.

Good suggestions. To teach him to put his head underwater so far, I've used kids diving rings, like were pointed out at the divepets link.

The problem is finding another dog that can do what I'm looking to teach him to do - appreciate the suggestions. If anyone else has thoughts, I'm open.

First, you need to outfit your dog properly.





Then he needs to undertake extensive training. This dog has reached "Advanced" level.



LOL