Better When Wet

I've never seen Coulee swim just for the sake of swimming, but she loves to fetch in the water. She will give you the toy and then race into the river and wait for you to throw it. Yet, without a toy, she won't do anything more than splash around a bit. She will stay in long enough to get a drink and to give you the "are-you-going-to-throw-anything-look" and then get out. Is this another quirky Coulee mannerism or are most water dogs like this? (Sandy, you don't need to answer that!)