Cruising With A Service Dog....everything You Ever Wanted To Know!

Well we are back from an epic Alaska cruise! Once again Orson was the hit of the trip. He has alot of new fans. I'm in the process of playing catch-up at work but if anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask. We did find out that Disney has a Service Dog relief area on deck 4. It is in a very nice cover area. We had our own on our balcony.

The ships are getting amazingly wonderful, generous and helpful in placing the potty box on your patio. It just makes life so much easier. You can take a potty break, while he's taking a potty break......Easy, peasy!!!!! ;)

I'm glad your voyage was a good one. And, that Orson's memory bank is even fuller now with wonderful journey's!

Mornin' all:

I don't know if anyone else has noticed or mentioned it, but when I was signing in this morning, I glanced over at "views" for this thread, over 1,200,000! Is that not pawsome? Thank you Auntie Roz for starting this heart rendering thread. We have been through everything, some more than once, some happy. some sad, but always special to me. Only allowed 6 images per post!

:):(:mad::p:D:o

Nancy, we miss you when your life takes precedence over being with us.

The majority of us have been "there" for each other through the most difficult of journeys in life.

We're an amazing group of friends! And, I love it when others join us for a visit or two!!!

Fairbourne, Trudy, how are you. I hope you're staying away because you're so busy with your babies!

Happy, safe, restful weekend EVERYONE!

Well we are back from an epic Alaska cruise! Once again Orson was the hit of the trip. He has alot of new fans. I'm in the process of playing catch-up at work but if anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask. We did find out that Disney has a Service Dog relief area on deck 4. It is in a very nice cover area. We had our own on our balcony.

Welcome home. I do have a few questions.

Did you go on any wheelchair accessible excursions? I have been trying to contact Dolphin Jetboat Tours (formerly Orca Enterprises) for whale watching, but they are not answering any of my e-mails.

How was the flight? Which airline did you use and were you in the bulkhead? How was the room for Orson?

thanks, Dianne

Mornin' all:

I don't know if anyone else has noticed or mentioned it, but when I was signing in this morning, I glanced over at "views" for this thread, over 1,200,000! Is that not pawsome? Thank you Auntie Roz for starting this heart rendering thread. We have been through everything, some more than once, some happy. some sad, but always special to me. Only allowed 6 images per post!

:):(:mad::p:D:o

Amazing!!

Well we are back from an epic Alaska cruise! Once again Orson was the hit of the trip. He has alot of new fans. I'm in the process of playing catch-up at work but if anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask. We did find out that Disney has a Service Dog relief area on deck 4. It is in a very nice cover area. We had our own on our balcony.

Welcome back, Den! So glad you had an epic cruise, and after you get caught up, let us know more details. Thanks for getting Alaska prepped for us. Photos are always welcome!!

Glad to hear you had the balcony box. I'm so glad that's becoming more of a possibility, it seems. Sure would make life easier.

We're in a hotel tonight (leaving our car here for a couple of weeks on a park & fly package) and board our cross-country flight to Seattle in the morning. First time to fly together as a team. Then sail on Monday!

Welcome back, Den! So glad you had an epic cruise, and after you get caught up, let us know more details. Thanks for getting Alaska prepped for us. Photos are always welcome!!

 

Glad to hear you had the balcony box. I'm so glad that's becoming more of a possibility, it seems. Sure would make life easier.

 

We're in a hotel tonight (leaving our car here for a couple of weeks on a park & fly package) and board our cross-country flight to Seattle in the morning. First time to fly together as a team. Then sail on Monday!

Have a great trip Chris. I know that Raylene will do great on the plane. Looking forward to hearing all about your trip when you return.

Dianne

Well, now that I have read through the almost thirty pages of posts made since I was last here in May.... :o

DKD, sorry to hear about the cancer, but I urge you to see a veterinary oncologist about it. Going to your regular vet is like you going to your GP (General Practitioner) for something like cancer.

Rangely, same goes for you, and I can recommend a place in your area (New England Veterinary Oncology Group, NEVOG, which has multiple locations).

Someone asked about St. Maarten. I was with a group, so we did our own private tours for the group in each port, but I didn't have any access issues, including to a delicious French bakery and large souvenir shop (I honestly can't remember where else we went on that island, maybe a beach?). I don't think I saw any stray dogs there.

Jaeger's handler, congratulations on graduating from team training!

Oh, and when flying with a service dog, feeding depends on the time of the flight. For morning flights, I don't feed breakfast until we reach the destination. For afternoon and evening flights (unless they're short), I feed breakfast early in the morning (around 5a) so they have the chance to potty it out before we leave. I have never done an overnight flight with a service dog, so flying has never interfered with dinner. Water is taken away a couple hours before leaving. HOWEVER, now that airports are required to have relief areas in the secure area, there's really no need anymore to withhold food or water. You may want to contact your airports in advance about where the relief areas are.

We're doing okay here. It is hard to believe that it has already been eleven months since I brought my girl home from the trainer! (And a year since my for girl passed.) Crazy how time flies sometimes. She is doing great, her alerting is on point, and she's excellent at her other tasks.

Maybe next time won't be as long checking in on you guys!

All you CCI dog partners, see today's Parade magazine if your Sunday paper includes it. There's a CCI team on the cover and article inside.

Hi, Quam!

Well, everybody, all worked out well for yesterday for my maiden air voyage with Raylene. Long travel day. We flew Tampa to Seattle with a two hour layover in Dallas.

Glad Bob booked day passes for the AA Admiral's Club so we had a quiet place to sit away from crowds. In Tampa, there NO dog relief area inside security at least in the terminal where we were. The Admirals Club woman very helpfully called for an AA manager who came and escorted us outside via locked corridors and a freight elevator to a non-public area with grass. He had to stand and wait for Raylene to do her thing, then lead us back to the gate hallway. Not a great use of the man's time! But the Admirals Club people were not authorized to take us to that area. There was one of those tall trash cans with poop bags out there.

In Dallas, I went online and printed a map but apparently the relief stations are changing/have changed...every person we asked had a different gate number, location, or answer! Lots of riding around on the connecting train. We went first to a room designated for dog use, like a bathroom. Two green AstroTurf mats on the concrete floor, and a sort of hose reel marked "please flush." Didn't try that because there was no way Raylene was interested in using it. Maybe a chemical smell. Ultimately I went outside the building with her, found some grass, re-entered the terminal, and went back through security. Bob stayed with the hand baggage in the Admirals Club.

Raylene just curled up and slept all through the flights on the Dog Hog mat folded in half. The flight attendants were nice about bringing ice chips, and I gave her a few on each flight. So flying worked out fine ...but using the dog relief areas is a challenge.

Then there's downtown Seattle, which is almost as bad as Manhattan for doggies who want to conduct "business". We asked at our Seattle Sheraton hotel desk where we could find some grass, but the young woman and her co-worker could only point out a park on a map more than a mile away. Clueless! On our own, we found a public park this morning about three blocks away for walks. For early a.m. & before bed, we made do with gravel squares around trees outside.

She also asked us to sign a "Pet Waiver" because, she explained, they are not a "dog friendly hotel." I had already reached that conclusion, explained that she is not a pet but they wanted it anyway. I was too tired to explain American law to a desk clerk in a major Hotel chain, drew a line through "pet" and wrote in Service Dog.

Very annoying and not requested at an other hotel we've ever visited. This hotel was Holland America's pre-cruise package choice. Doubt I'll ever book any Sheratons if this is typical.

Hi, Quam!

 

Then there's downtown Seattle, which is almost as bad as Manhattan for doggies who want to conduct "business". We asked at our Seattle Sheraton hotel desk where we could find some grass, but the young woman and her co-worker could only point out a park on a map more than a mile away. Clueless! On our own, we found a public park this morning about three blocks away for walks. For early a.m. & before bed, we made do with gravel squares around trees outside.

 

She also asked us to sign a "Pet Waiver" because, she explained, they are not a "dog friendly hotel." I had already reached that conclusion, explained that she is not a pet but they wanted it anyway. I was too tired to explain American law to a desk clerk in a major Hotel chain, drew a line through "pet" and wrote in Service Dog.

 

Very annoying and not requested at an other hotel we've ever visited. This hotel was Holland America's pre-cruise package choice. Doubt I'll ever book any Sheratons if this is typical.

So glad to hear that Raylene's flight went well! So frustrating about the dog relief areas. I e-mailed FLL about their indoor area and all they had to say is that it will be noted on the website when it is in place. I suspect what is happening is that there is no enforcement mechanism to force the airports to put the indoor relief areas in place inside security (even though we are past the deadline). It will probably be up to us as service dog teams to write letters of complaint to get the airports to comply with the law.

As to the hotel, that is ridiculous! The ADA is 25 years old, they should not be asking you to sign a pet waiver. It is very hard to deal with the situation when you are tired and just want to get to your hotel room. Before traveling to a hotel, I usually zoom in on google maps and try to find where there are grass areas nearby.

Hope you have a fantastic cruise!

Dianne

My dog is not fond of the neighbor's cat ...

 

Love it!

Well we are back from an epic Alaska cruise! Once again Orson was the hit of the trip. He has alot of new fans. I'm in the process of playing catch-up at work but if anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask. We did find out that Disney has a Service Dog relief area on deck 4. It is in a very nice cover area. We had our own on our balcony.

Welcome back Den!! Hope you guys had a great time.

Welcome back, Den! So glad you had an epic cruise, and after you get caught up, let us know more details. Thanks for getting Alaska prepped for us. Photos are always welcome!!

 

Glad to hear you had the balcony box. I'm so glad that's becoming more of a possibility, it seems. Sure would make life easier.

 

We're in a hotel tonight (leaving our car here for a couple of weeks on a park & fly package) and board our cross-country flight to Seattle in the morning. First time to fly together as a team. Then sail on Monday!

Have a great cruise!!!

Quam! Long time. Glad things are going well with you and your new partner. Thanks for the info for Wexler.

All you CCI dog partners, see today's Parade magazine if your Sunday paper includes it. There's a CCI team on the cover and article inside.

The CCI dog in the article is Henri's half brother (same father - Orent II).

I saw a genealogy for Henri's dad on his facebook page and it turns out that Baumann is Henri's great great grandfather. So Brenda must be Henri's great great Aunt and Wexler must be Henri's great Uncle (Henri's great grandfather is Waverly II and I am guessing he must be Wexler's brother).

Dianne

Welcome home. I do have a few questions.

 

Did you go on any wheelchair accessible excursions? I have been trying to contact Dolphin Jetboat Tours (formerly Orca Enterprises) for whale watching, but they are not answering any of my e-mails.

 

How was the flight? Which airline did you use and were you in the bulkhead? How was the room for Orson?

 

thanks, Dianne

We actually did the whale watch in Juneau with Dolphin Jet Boat Tours. (1-800-719-3422) We met them right in town in front of the Mt. Roberts tram. They had a vehicle with a wheelchair lift for us. They took us to the dock where one of the guys wheeled my daughter down the ramp to the boat. I wheeled her right on to the boat. When we stopped to watch for whales, we were able to wheel he out onto the back of the boat so she could see everything. The trip was amazing. When we got back to the dock, the same driver was there to pick us up. She gave us the option of being dropped off in town or back at the ship. We flew Air Canada. They were fantastic. When I called to book our flight, we were given the bulkhead seats for both flights. We flew a 787 both ways. I'm 6'-1" and I could stretch my legs out. We had room in front of us for 2 dogs. Any more questions, feel free to ask.

The CCI dog in the article is Henri's half brother (same father - Orent II).

 

I saw a genealogy for Henri's dad on his facebook page and it turns out that Baumann is Henri's great great grandfather. So Brenda must be Henri's great great Aunt and Wexler must be Henri's great Uncle (Henri's great grandfather is Waverly II and I am guessing he must be Wexler's brother).

 

Dianne

Chill bumps and tears! Happy tears. Small, small world, isn't it? No wonder all our furkids are the bestest, they are all related with excellent blood lines. Hugs and kisses to all.

I'm trying to figure out how to install a seatbelt. Also, the local ordinances are a little fuzzy on whether or not she needs a riding helmet ...

 

that is too cute...

Chris - have a great cruise!..take lots of pics!

Welcome back, Den! So glad you had an epic cruise, and after you get caught up, let us know more details. Thanks for getting Alaska prepped for us. Photos are always welcome!!

 

Glad to hear you had the balcony box. I'm so glad that's becoming more of a possibility, it seems. Sure would make life easier.

 

We're in a hotel tonight (leaving our car here for a couple of weeks on a park & fly package) and board our cross-country flight to Seattle in the morning. First time to fly together as a team. Then sail on Monday!

Chris, I didn't see your posting before this morning and I wanted to wish you and Raylene an amazing trip and voyage. I hope that all goes well for both of you and that you come back with some great stories for us!

Bon~Voyage!

The CCI dog in the article is Henri's half brother (same father - Orent II).

 

I saw a genealogy for Henri's dad on his facebook page and it turns out that Baumann is Henri's great great grandfather. So Brenda must be Henri's great great Aunt and Wexler must be Henri's great Uncle (Henri's great grandfather is Waverly II and I am guessing he must be Wexler's brother).

 

Dianne

We're related! How neat is that! Let's hope for a family reunion one day......Although, Brenda is not with us anymore it's always fun to see other dogs who are related and find the similarities in them!

She lived a long, healthy and wonderful life I hope that Henri gets the same good genes!!!!

Hi, Quam!

 

Well, everybody, all worked out well for yesterday for my maiden air voyage with Raylene. Long travel day. We flew Tampa to Seattle with a two hour layover in Dallas.

 

Glad Bob booked day passes for the AA Admiral's Club so we had a quiet place to sit away from crowds. In Tampa, there NO dog relief area inside security at least in the terminal where we were. The Admirals Club woman very helpfully called for an AA manager who came and escorted us outside via locked corridors and a freight elevator to a non-public area with grass. He had to stand and wait for Raylene to do her thing, then lead us back to the gate hallway. Not a great use of the man's time! But the Admirals Club people were not authorized to take us to that area. There was one of those tall trash cans with poop bags out there.

 

In Dallas, I went online and printed a map but apparently the relief stations are changing/have changed...every person we asked had a different gate number, location, or answer! Lots of riding around on the connecting train. We went first to a room designated for dog use, like a bathroom. Two green AstroTurf mats on the concrete floor, and a sort of hose reel marked "please flush." Didn't try that because there was no way Raylene was interested in using it. Maybe a chemical smell. Ultimately I went outside the building with her, found some grass, re-entered the terminal, and went back through security. Bob stayed with the hand baggage in the Admirals Club.

 

Raylene just curled up and slept all through the flights on the Dog Hog mat folded in half. The flight attendants were nice about bringing ice chips, and I gave her a few on each flight. So flying worked out fine ...but using the dog relief areas is a challenge.

 

Then there's downtown Seattle, which is almost as bad as Manhattan for doggies who want to conduct "business". We asked at our Seattle Sheraton hotel desk where we could find some grass, but the young woman and her co-worker could only point out a park on a map more than a mile away. Clueless! On our own, we found a public park this morning about three blocks away for walks. For early a.m. & before bed, we made do with gravel squares around trees outside.

 

She also asked us to sign a "Pet Waiver" because, she explained, they are not a "dog friendly hotel." I had already reached that conclusion, explained that she is not a pet but they wanted it anyway. I was too tired to explain American law to a desk clerk in a major Hotel chain, drew a line through "pet" and wrote in Service Dog.

 

Very annoying and not requested at an other hotel we've ever visited. This hotel was Holland America's pre-cruise package choice. Doubt I'll ever book any Sheratons if this is typical.

Chris, the complexities of traveling with a Service Dog are all wrapped around the place to potty and hotels that don't know the law and don't have properly trained staff.

I have used Sheraton's and have NOT had a problem with them [my favorite hotel near San Francisco is the 4 Points Sheraton in Pleasanton.] Your hotel was lucky it wasn't me........I would have NEVER signed any document for them, EVER! You went "the least path of resistence" route and that worked for you. I would have made this a learning opportunity for them.......tiring as it is at times........The hotel manager needed a word from me on how to treat someone with a Service Dog! I NEVER miss a chance to teach them how to treat us!!!!!

Your experience, at this Sheraton, is NOT typical.

Well, now that I have read through the almost thirty pages of posts made since I was last here in May.... :o

 

DKD, sorry to hear about the cancer, but I urge you to see a veterinary oncologist about it. Going to your regular vet is like you going to your GP (General Practitioner) for something like cancer.

 

Rangely, same goes for you, and I can recommend a place in your area (New England Veterinary Oncology Group, NEVOG, which has multiple locations).

 

Someone asked about St. Maarten. I was with a group, so we did our own private tours for the group in each port, but I didn't have any access issues, including to a delicious French bakery and large souvenir shop (I honestly can't remember where else we went on that island, maybe a beach?). I don't think I saw any stray dogs there.

 

Jaeger's handler, congratulations on graduating from team training!

 

Oh, and when flying with a service dog, feeding depends on the time of the flight. For morning flights, I don't feed breakfast until we reach the destination. For afternoon and evening flights (unless they're short), I feed breakfast early in the morning (around 5a) so they have the chance to potty it out before we leave. I have never done an overnight flight with a service dog, so flying has never interfered with dinner. Water is taken away a couple hours before leaving. HOWEVER, now that airports are required to have relief areas in the secure area, there's really no need anymore to withhold food or water. You may want to contact your airports in advance about where the relief areas are.

 

 

We're doing okay here. It is hard to believe that it has already been eleven months since I brought my girl home from the trainer! (And a year since my for girl passed.) Crazy how time flies sometimes. She is doing great, her alerting is on point, and she's excellent at her other tasks.

 

Maybe next time won't be as long checking in on you guys!

Quam, glad to hear that you and your new Service Dog are doing well!

Hi,

I have enjoyed reading through this thread. I will be taking my first cruise with my Diabetic Alert Dog (DAD) next month. Jake has been on a couple of smaller vessels on a dolphin watch but not overnight. We have been practising with a potty box but he does not like mulch, prefers the grass. I have learned a lot reading this thread and feel we are fairly prepared. We have been on many long road trips, so we are use to packing all his needed supplies. Thanks for all the post!