Kayak dog!

I've been really wanting to take Hope out paddling with me at Lake Natoma. A while back, I put her in the cockpit of my boat, but it was too small for me to paddle with her in the boat. So ever since then, I've been contemplating getting another kayak that she could fit in.

Today, I went to Paddlefest at Lake Natoma with a friend to try out some kayaks. We tried out several boats that could Hope could fit in and I found a sit-on kayak that I liked where Hope could fit in either the front or back.

After we got back, my friend had a great idea to put Hope's dog bed on the back of the kayak I already have, strap it in, and let Hope try it out. We first had her practice jumping up on the boat while it was on dry land and we held it steady. After she got comfortable with that, we had her jump on the boat and rocked it back and forth a little to get her used to the motion of it moving. Then the real test, we put the boat in the water and had her jump on it several times. Then the next test was having my friend get in the boat, then paddle with her on the back.

Surprisingly, she did GREAT! I was totally expecting her to panic or be nervous, but she seemed comfortable after a few tries. We are going to take her out to Lake Natoma and try the same thing as a final test, next time with me in the boat. I stayed out of the boat today so I could encourage her and give her treats.

So now the dilemma is, do I get the new boat or do I use my current boat? Hmmmmm....what to do, what to do....