Any time your child is in or near water, please keep active adult supervision and ensure this list is checked off.
Make sure all doors and windows leading to the pool are always locked and alarmed.
As soon as baby can crawl, they become high risk for accidental drowning. Pool fencing is the only layer of protection that provides a physical barrier between your home and the pool. If you wouldn’t own a car without seat belts, do not own a pool without a fence. Pool fences should have a self-closing, self-latching gate that opens away from the pool.
A pond is similar to a swimming pool in regard to the danger and allure it poses for children. Fence the pond separately. Another option is to use netting or a sturdy cover to ward off kids, pets and fish-seeking predators.
Survival swim lessons are one of the greatest gifts you can give your child. Babies can learn to self rescue around 6 months as soon as they are able to sit up unassisted. Find a certified instructor in your area to teach your child how to survive in water before they're able to enjoy the water.
This respect of water is so important.
Your baby’s head is large compared to the rest of his or her body which affects balance. When a toddler falls into a toilet head first, he cannot push himself back out. When you use toilet locks, you will have safety for baby and peace of mind for you.
A child can drown in as little as 1 inch of water. Make sure all buckets with water are always emptied. Young children can fall head first into the bucket and then are unable to get out.
All inflatable pools should be emptied after every single use. You do not have to deflate them, but you do need to empty them. This is a major risk for any child walking by.
Pet doors can be extremely dangerous because children can crawl out through them. Any pet doors leading to a body of water like a pool or backyard pond, should be removed completely. It takes one time to accidentally leave them open for an accident to happen.
Any flotation device that promotes the vertical position (the drowning position) head-up, feet-down position inhibit the ability to swim. Children who wear floaties "think" they can swim and leads to a false sense of security. Life jackets should only be used for boating or open water a required by law.
Pool toys are a lot of fun but children are tempted to reach out to try and get the toy from the pool's edge and fall in. Never leave these inside the pool after use.
In a drowning accident seconds can make the difference between death, recovery, or just survival. Prevention is vital to reducing drownings. But, an immediate response can save lives, too. Get CPR certified, this can save their life until help arrives if an emergency were to ever happen.
