Drowning-body floating

[bigbob]

We found our dog who was about 14+ yrs old floating in our pool. My question is being that she was floating, might she been dead before she fell in. Thank you

[bednobs]

i dont understand... if she was dead before she fell in, how did she fall in?

[bigbob]

I don't if she was dead, that's why I'm asking the question. I just thought that if she drown, she would of been in the bottom of the pool.

[bednobs]

it must be hard for you and im srry, bt what i am trying to say is this ... the dog had to have drowened, because if it had died before it was in the pool, it would have found it very difficult to get to the pool - it being dead and all. Unless you are suggesting someone put the dog in after it was dead?

[Ethel]

You are right to think that a dead body sinks - but it very quickly rises and floats. This applies to all mammals.


It is highly likely your dog died in the pool. Could your dog have jumped in and not be able to scramble back out?

If you want or need to know absolutely your vet will carry out a post mortem to determine the cause of death.

[jenky]

A dead body thrown into the pool can still sink - likewise sunken bodies produce gases internally that encourage the corpse to return to the surface.
So, sorry for your loss bigbob, but it would be hard to tell without checking the lungs. If the lungs are full of water, it tends to be an indication of drowning as a cause of death. A body that is dead before entering the water, would not inhale water into the lungs...