Top 5 Best Dog Ramps for Water

Suppose you're looking for ways to allow your pets to cool down and exercise while swimming, a water ramp for dogs is a great tool.

Safety should be your first concern, and some of the best dog ramps for water can assist your pup with getting in and out of the pool or boat.

Dog water ramps aren't necessary in most cases, and there must be a specific reason to buy one.

For example, considering the costs of some of these water ramps for dogs, it might make sense to opt for a separate dog pool instead of buying a ramp for your current pool.

However, if you're planning to go on boat trips, or have a large pool that you'd like your dog to swim in, or any other reason where a dog ramp for water may assist your pooch, our below reviewed, and favorite best dog ramps for water will be your best bet.

The 5 Best Dog Ramps for Water

1PetSTEP Folding Pet Ramp
by Petstep

Though this dog ladder is for boats, it can also be used on pools. It comes in graphite or khaki. This solid staircase and is portable and durable, but it isn’t too heavy; it was fairly easy for us to carry it.

The design is rubber and is ribbed so that it's slip-resistant for dogs.

Because the material is rubberized, the dog water ramp rust-proof and is coated not to get bleached out by the sun, the grip is universal and is supposed to work with most boats.

It attaches to the boat’s regular ladder. However, standard boat ladders over fourteen inches wide will require you to attach the extension piece to them.

This is first one of the best dog ramps for water, but one issue with it is it's as wide as we'd like it to be.

We have a wide boat ladder and found the extension attachment to be just a tiny bit cumbersome. Also, this ladder is not made for large dogs.

We had some issues with our bigger dog's legs slipping off and not fitting.

Generally, this is a great dog water ramp for small or medium breeds, as the ladder itself is lightweight for easy portability.

That said, we liked this ramp much better for our pool than a boat. We were able to attach it with no problems, and it provided a ribbed surface that would ensure that our dogs didn’t fall down and off into the water.

 

2LP500 Pet-Loading Platform
by Great Day

This dog water platform made getting in and out of the water much faster for our pup. It works for both boats and pools.

The water ramp is made of lightweight yet sturdy aluminum and is powder-coated to prevent corrosion or rust.

The platform is 20 inches long and fourteen inches wide and is seven pounds in weight, making it useful for smaller breeds, length-wise.

The platform has traction ridges on its surface to ensure that a dog has even footing while walking on it. Security straps are diagonally linked from the platform to the lift’s frame to safeguard against the platform falling.

To operate, your boat needs to have a boarding ladder (it's on most boats). Connect this dog water ramp to the boarding ladder, and it is ready to go.

Great Day's water dog ramp is second on the list because it is size-impaired. The lift is less than two feet long, and our large dog (length-wise) couldn't use it.

It also can’t support as much weight as some other best dog water ramps listed here.

It is designed to hang on the rung of a ladder, though we found that the narrowness of the platform—two feet—didn’t always fit the ladder that we were accustomed to on our boat.

Generally, we were satisfied with the overall quality, and it was straightforward to set up. Our dog, which's shorter in length but heavier, was able to fit on it.

Despite the water ramp’s seemingly lightweight (seven pounds), it actually did fine with a dog of around a hundred pounds.

The security straps are not flimsy and hold the platform very well. Note that you cannot use the ladder while this is attached.

There was a small problem with the mounting system: the J-hooks provided to mount this pet water ramp onto the boat ladder came out too easily, something which was a bit bothersome.

 

3Doggy Boat Ladder and Ramp
by Paws Aboard

This doggy water ramp comes in the colors of gray and khaki. It measures seventy inches long by seventeen inches wide, so that’s almost six feet in length.

It can be used at the pool, as well as with furniture, cars, staircases, vet tables, and pretty much anywhere your little bud needs a boost.

This third best water ramp for dogs folds in half and is portable for easy transport. The walking surface is rubberized and won’t be uncomfortable against your pet’s paws; there’s no splintering wood or sandpapery feel.

The surface is also easy to clean. To use, you unfold it and prop one end at the top of what you’re leading down from, and the other end should go on the ground—very straightforward.

The ramp might seem a little pricey, but it is of higher quality than others we reviewed and has fantastic traction, even when it’s raining or when it's wet from the pool.

Since you’ll be using this around water, high traction is a must-have. It was also very convenient for our home set up and isn’t this giant contraption that is impossible to use.

Folded in half, it measures a little less than three feet in length, so it’s not unbearable to tote around if need be.

We were pleased with the sturdiness of the water ramp and how easy it was to use. The padded rubber was soft on dogs’ feet too, and if you have an older dog in pain, that soft surface is a definite bonus.

 

45300 Pool Pup Steps
by Paws Aboard

This dog boat latter is one-size-fits-all and is a little different than the water ramps for dogs we’ve reviewed above.

It consists of three steps, all large, with no slats in the middle.

The steps are to be screw-driven into the side of your pool, so you need to make sure you have a screwdriver and pins handy for the job.

The ramp steps go into the water and are made of material that can be submerged and resistant to UV rays and chlorine—acrylonitrile butadiene styrene plastic, which is a low-cost, heavy-duty material.

The water ramp is removable: you remove the two pins you screwed in, and then the ladder can be stored away for winter or cleaning, which is convenient.

This dog ramp is usable for pets that are between 4 and 150 pounds. The first step (the lowest one) is 14.5” deep, the second 8.5”, and the third is 5” (the step at the top).

Smaller dogs may need a little assistance getting in and out if they can’t maneuver the bottom step’s depth. The step works for in-ground and above-ground pools.

This is the fourth of best dog ramps for water because the installation does take some work. It isn’t like the other ramps that you can unsnap and set out.

This one did require us to screw in two pins to hold the top step steady. The height of the steps is non-adjustable, and the depth of the third step might be a little difficult for smaller dogs to manage, though, by that time, they’re pretty much in the water.

The steps have a ribbed texture, so it doesn’t get slippery easily the way a flat surface does.

This step is not for a dock, so if you plan to get this and engineer it to fit your boat, you’re better off going with one of the other water ramps above.

The steps’ ability to support even giant dogs will be great for owners with large pets who otherwise often struggle to find a piece of equipment to fit their big dogs adequately.

You may also want to replace the screws in the steps, as they are plastic and are, as we've noticed, not durable for use several times a day, every day.

It might make more sense to either reapply them with sturdy glue or replace them with metal.

 

5Super Skamper Pet Ramp
by Skamper Ramp

This last water dog ramp has a non-slip rubber surface that is ridged for traction. Unfolded, it has a 24-inch length, a 14-inch width, and a thickness of two and a half inches. It weighs 6 pounds.

This pet ramp can support most dogs and people. It is good for water because it floats and is made of plastic with a rubberized surface.

The plastic was straightforward to clean, and it doesn't corrode or get rusted. It washes with soap and water.

The handles on the sides are ergonomic, meaning that they’ll be comfortable for you to hold and handle. Snapped in half, the pet ramp is easily portable and measures less than three feet in length, and should store easily enough.

This dog ramp for water is also workable for locations other than the pool, such as truck beds, cars, boats, and pretty much anywhere you might need a ramp for your dog.

However, it is clunkier than the above models; yet, it's also cheaper. It weighs 6 pounds instead of 7-18 pounds that others do, and for some owners, that may be inconvenient.

Overall, we were pleased with this ramp, and we believe that for owners with dogs with arthritis or osteoporosis, this may be the best choice.

If you buy it, be very careful how you hold this ramp because one false move would send it smashing shut straight onto your fingers, which will be painful, as we found out the hard way.

This water dog ramp seems to be long-lasting. One issue for small dogs might be the overall size of the ramp.

Extended, it’s 24 inches long and quite hefty. A small dog may need time to adjust to the size and get comfortable going up and down such an incline.

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