Ed; Yellow Mob et al: Need Engineer help!

[Catdog1]

OK guys. Need to figure out how to get my new dog into the boat. This varmit is a water dog by heredity and I want to find a way to have fun with it on the water this summer.

If I can get it onto the platform, it can step into the boat. Can't figure out how to help it onto the platform.

Need some sort of step rig. Gotta be easy on the dog's back section and hips, though.

Any ideas would be GREATLY appreciated.

[BensonWdby]

I assume you mean from the water onto the platform, right?

I am thinking something made of electrical conduit and ripstop nylon.
Think about downhill skiing and the gates that they use for Giant Slalom. Two poles with a fabric flag between them. If you change the poles so that they are not parallel, but rather spread out toward the bottom, like an A-Frame. In this case wide enough so you could hook them through the stern eyes. You would need another pole across the top of the A. (Remember the old indian Travois?) The pole would be long enough and the fabric would be located such that it would be just below the surface of the water and angled down and way. You may actually need to bend the poles for desired effect.

The idea here is to have a submerged cloth 'tramp' where the cross member of the A is close enough to the platform so that once the dogs front feet are on the platform their back legs can tuck up and either get their toe nails into the fabric or catch the cross member. This is why it is important to have the tramp under water and angled away.

If you are concerned about people not being able to use the platform when this is installed you could modify the design so that your device attaches to a bar that runs between the stern eyes. This would allow the device to be a lot narrower.

You could prototype this from parts salvaged from an old pup tent.

Good luck.
Dave

[zabooda]

I have a golden retreiver and I use a harness that fits around the front legs and chest which allows me to lift him up from the front while I'm standing on the deck and then he can catch his back paws on the deck and pull himself up. My daughter does dog shows so she dremels the claws so they won't puncture the vinyl while jumping in. You can also open up a life jacket and put across the seat.

[Catdog1]

Thanks for replying. The dog is about twice as large as a lab so I can't lift it and am going to need something real sturdy. Maybe the fabric idea with a bit more heavy duty structure, kind of like one of those fold-up fabric chairs positioned deeper and back from the platform. Maybe I can hinge it from the platform and flip it down into position.