Eric as Barge

In the 1800's, when trains were new and there were no trucks, coal and other bulk cargo was transported on barges pulled by mules. The barges floated in canals while the mules walked on adjacent towpaths, towing the barges with long ropes (see http://www.coe.ilstu.edu/iga/IMCanal/IMCanal/PhotoJ.jpg ). Railroads took over much of the cargo traffic in the early 1900's, and today, canals and towpaths are used for scenery and recreation ( http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/09/AR2005060900643.html ).

We took Eric to the dog pool on Saturday. He refused to get in the water on his own, so we put him on the first step where the water just covered his feet and he hated it! Nonetheless, we decided that he should swim - after all, we had paid $10 (5.54 GBP, 8.13 Euros) for the privilege - so we put two leashes on him and tossed him in the single-lane pool. Deb and I acted as mules for a little Eric-barge, and towed him the length of the pool. He still hated it, so we tried it again, expecting a different result. No luck - he paddled like Dash in The Incredibles while we towed him, but he still hated it. The only hope is that Eric & Natasha's dog, Max, didn't seem to like the dog pool either, but back home, he hopped in their neighbor's swimming pool on his own. Not that we want Eric to hop in neighbor's pools, but it would be nice if he liked to swim in something other than the cow's water tub.