Pioneering puppy Oscar creates a splash on Lough Owel

While very few people have set foot on the outcrop in the middle of Lough Owel that's home to the bizarrely located signpost, it's highly likely that Claire Underwood's dog Oscar is the first four legged creature to do so.

Pioneer Oscar created his own little piece of local canine history on Wednesday evening last after he hitched a lift on Claire's kayak when she and her friend Derek went for a paddle.

She says that he was taking a break on the rocks as he “exhausted” from jumping in and out of the kayak and chasing birds.

Oscar is a regular visitor to Lough Owel as he accompanies Claire when she goes for her daily morning swim. For her 50th birthday Claire is going for a dip in every county in Ireland and the intrepid Oscar does them all with her too.

While he is an accomplished swimmer at this stage, Wednesday's excursion on the lake was the seventh month old puppy's second time on a kayak.

“[We] ended up with more water in the kayak than out with him jumping In and out,” Claire told us.