Dog days go swimmingly at Bryan Park Pool

A Great Dane stood in line waiting to be admitted, while a soaking wet Golden Retriever walked out. Upon entering, the Great Dane saw other canine friends, toys and a pool designated just for dogs.

It’s not normally a pool for dogs, but on Wednesday Bryan Park Pool was full of big splashes, loud barks and plenty of puppy love for the sixth annual Drool in the Pool.

The event is sponsored by the City of Bloomington Parks and Recreation Department and White River Co-op Inc., and is the last event at the pool before draining the water.
Bill Ream, program and facility coordinator for Bloomington Parks and Recreation said they had about 75 dogs in the pool after only an hour of being open.

The main pool and Limestone Lagoon were open for only the dogs to play in. No humans were allowed to swim for health reasons.

“This is where the dogs go who aren’t quite sure they want to swim,” Ream said, gesturing toward the lagoon.

This was Ream’s first year working with the event and he has only lived in Bloomington for about one year. He said he thinks it’s great the city has this event. 

“It’s such an unusual event,” he said. “Not everybody would think to market to dogs, but they’re part of the family, so why not?”

But it’s not all fun and games for three hours straight. There ware two mandatory safety breaks where all the dogs have to rest for about 10 minutes.

“A lot of the dogs don’t always know they need a break,” Ream said. “Some of the dogs would just stay in there all night and not know they’re getting tired.”

Lisa and Scott Stucky have one of those dogs that would probably stay all night. Their dog, Dalton, is 10 years old and loves water. Lisa said Dalton has been known to jump in the Showalter Fountain and the fountain in front of the IU Jacobs School of Music.

Lisa said Dalton’s favorite part of Drool in the Pool is “just jumping in and getting the balls,” as Scott threw the ball in the water and watched Dalton paddle after it.
Other owners were there with younger dogs such as Abby Mulry and her 9-month-old English Bulldog and Lisa Coons with her 10-month-old Giant Schnauzer.

“She’s very curious,” Coons said about her dog, LeBrie. “She’s mostly been chasing other dogs.”

As the night wore on, the giant leaps turned into lazy belly flops into the pool and the swimming was slower. The dogs might have been tired and wet, but they were happy.
“They all seem to be having a good time,” Ream said.