Amanda Vermeer used to work at and now frequents a campsite on a lake, and neither she nor anybody else there feels shocked or worried if they spot a dog in the distance swimming merrily across the lake. Thunder alone accomplishes that, and he does it practically daily.
Thunder, who is currently approximately 10 years old, has been swimming every day from his residence to the campsite on the opposite side of the lake for as long as anyone can remember. It has become his norm, and despite his family’s best efforts to stop him, he always manages to pull it off.
“I truly believe that the swim across the lake is his favorite part of the whole endeavor, but on the camp side of the lake, I think he really just enjoys wandering around from campsite to campsite saying hi to all the people and seeing how far he can get before getting caught,” Vermeer told The Dodo. “Sometimes people give him little scraps of food, so I’m sure that’s a bonus in his mind, too.”
When someone sees Thunder doing anything, they always phone his dad to let him know that he did it again. All of the residents and regulars at the campsite now have Thunder’s father’s phone number stored in their phones. They are all aware that they will require it rather frequently.
“If his owner doesn’t get a call first, he hops in his vehicle and patrols around the lake searching for him,” Vermeer said. “Sometimes Thunder slips out of the home. He normally hangs out in the campground, so he starts his hunt there. Thunder doesn’t swim home since he enjoys his escapades too much.
Thunder’s family has tried different things to get him to stay on his side of the lake, but at this point, they’ve just kind of accepted that it’s a part of who Thunder is. His dad once said in a text to Vermeer, “I’ll never stop him from swimming … It’s what he loves. I would never take that away from him. I just wish I could teach him to swim home.”
Thunder seems to know that eventually, he’s going to get caught at the campground and his dad is going to come and pick him up. It’s almost as if it’s a game to him. He swims across the lake, then tries to see how long he can hang out at the campground before someone catches him. So far, he’s got quite the winning streak going.
“He’s always so proud of himself when he reaches the shoreline and comes out of the water, as if he’s saying, ‘Tada! Look, I’ve arrived!’ He definitely likes to do his own thing, so he’s never thrilled when we catch him and clip a leash on him,” Vermeer said.
“He gives us the side-eye and whines because we stopped his adventure short, but that can usually be remedied with some good pets and some scratches under his chin and behind his ears. Whenever he hears his owner’s truck coming, his tail starts wagging and he gets excited, like, ‘Hey, that’s my dad!’”
Thunder’s favorite part of his day is without a doubt swimming across the lake. His family and the other residents who live around the lake have all come to terms with the fact that Thunder is a water dog through and through.
Since he has been swimming over virtually daily for more than seven summers, Vermeer noted that it would be odd for Thunder to not swim across at this time.