Dogs onboard boats/yachts?

Very much agreed on this point. I used to live on a waterfront home in a relatively wealthy area, and several neighbors had dogs whom they let roam in the backyard and bark at every boat that passed by. One homeowner actually had their dogs vocal chords surgically removed. Imagine.

Animals have personalities, just like people. You need to mold them so they behave properly, and give them attention because they are pack animals.

I'm still thinking it's a bad idea to keep man's best friend on board. Like you I love dogs. But dogs and yachts really don't mix.

We travel with Gustav and Pippa, our 2 golden retrievers quite a bit. At anchor, we take them to shore to do their business and burn off some energy multiple times a day. They rarely bark, but when we are at the marina and want to go to dinner etc, I usually leave them in the cabin with music playing as to drown out any outside noise. The hair is another story however running the little dyson handheld around a couple times per day just becomes part of my usual chores... The dogs add another element of planning etc, however for us its worth it... Along with golden's mild temperament, the key for us was training. Both dogs received a lot of it and mind well.

Not currently a dog owner, but am myself owned by two cats. Do have some experience. A few observations......

Any dog can be trained, some easier than others. If you can't do it yourself, call a professional. If you own a large yacht you're probably not doing your own oil changes, let alone major repairs. So, bring a dog trainer on board and charge him/her to work with yard/crew to design a working solution and then train Fido to use it. Everybody happy, including the pooch.

Bilges. Some boaters more than others know that hair is lethal to bilge pumps. On our boat the girls knew to brush their hair on the leeward rail. I know that is not going to happen on a larger vessel with guests/crew. So the next best thing is a central vac that gets used regularly, nay daily. Add the dogs into the equation and now you're REALLY vacuuming. They shed, a lot, and although their hair is not as long as human hair, it finds it's way everywhere. And, groom regularly. (On the leeward rail, of course).

Flooring. A motionless house is one thing. A moving boat is another. If Fido doesn't get a regular pedicure, and the boat starts rolling, trying to hold on to the teak and holly will result in wood curls..... Plan accordingly.

Back to the training thing. Fido needs to be disciplined. A back yard is one place to ignore commands. A boat deck is a different ball game. Then it becomes a safety issue. If the owner/handler calls "HERE" it needs to happen, NOW.

Woof.

An owner came into the boat yard complaining that his genny would overheat constantly.
He owned a 50 + or so Sporty with a few dogs on board.
When the mechanics opened up the genny sound shield they found a fur coat of many colors.
I cannot remember how many dogs he really had but it was 3 at least, maybe 4.
When they removed the couch to gain access to the bilge they got their first clue. It appeared that the owner must not even OWN a vac, much less use it.

This thread already covers a bit of ground, but I'll add a few more points from 10 years of cruising (and using 20'-24' boats to get to an island cabin) with a chow-chow and samoyed:

• Much depends on the breed of dog (temperament, shedding, excitable)
• Much depends on the size of the dog (input, output, and moving the dog on/off the vessel)
• Some dogs bark - a lot and loudly - when left alone, that can really piss off neighbors in a marina
• Most dogs freak at loud booms like cannons. Not great if you're in a place like Roche Harbor that observes "colors"
• Some dogs hate the vibration.
• Almost all dogs will make the boat dirtier, whether it's stuff that falls off their coats, tracking in dirt from on deck (paws are sponges!), random little bits of food, whatever.

It can be a real challenge to boat with dogs, but if the alternative is not going boating...