Dog owners compete with their pets in paddle board contest

Here's something all you surfers could aim for.

About a dozen dogs and their owners have been taking to the waves on stand-up paddle boards off Rio de Janeiro’s Barra Beach.

They're practising for a second annual competition in which canine-human teams race around buoys.

Competitors are disqualified if the dog falls into the water.

“The idea started when I was on my board and my dog was tied up on the beach. I said to myself ’Man, he wants to come to the water!’ so I put him on the board and he loved it,” said event organiser Marco Sarnelli.

The race on February 16 is expected to draw as many as 50 dogs and their owners, from border collies to golden retrievers.

Iracema Braun, a stand-up paddle teacher who charges just over $100 dollars (€73) a month to take enthusiasts out on the water twice a week, said it is “a sport everybody can do. You don’t have to be an athlete to do it... any dog can do it.”