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

Wexler is not happy with the 22" of snow.

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Yikes, that’s a lotta snow!!! Stay safe, Cindy. I always like the black Wex against white snowbank pics you post.

Wexler is not happy with the 22" of snow. [ATTACH]416421[/ATTACH][ATTACH]416422[/ATTACH]

 

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I think Henri would like to play in the snow, but that is a lot of snow!!

Dianne

Trooper and I went to our APHIS-affiliated vet yesterday to do the paperwork for his upcoming Panama Canal cruise. The vet told us two interesting things:

1. The Bahamas requires a coronavirus immunization, which is almost never done in the United States. The U.S. vets feel the coronavirus vaccine is old and outmoded and never worked anyway. Parvovirus vaccine, the vet said, protects against coronavirus. But Trooper couldn't enter Bahamian waters without the coronavirus shot, so the vet looked around for it . . . and there was only one vet lab in Northern Illinois that had the vaccine, and they had only one vial left. Vet had to send an aide an hour out to the far northwest burbs to get it.

2. Costa Rica now requires that dogs be treated against ticks and other exoparasites 15 or fewer days before arrival. So our vet put some liquid tick chaser on the scruff of his neck. This evidently is something new . . . a monthly Nexgard or Frontline pill won't do, as it does for other countries.

If I have learned anything while cruising with a service dog, it's to start the paperwork WAY ahead of time so your vet has time to check things and get stuff.

Sexy Wexy looks like he is patiently waiting for a bus! Handsome Man! :*

I don’t know if I could bring my SD on a cruise with me. I need him a lot but is it worth putting him through all the hussle of people around the boat and such

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I suggest you try a weekend cruise rather than a week or longer. If your dog is comfortable around people on land, he ought to be on a ship as well. You do have to get paperwork for cruises to the Caribbean or foreign countries (except Canada--all you need is a rabies certificate). If you are in the US and want to cruise to Canada or Alaska, paperwork is very minimal.

Is it even possible to do the paperwork for a SD for a cruise that leaves on April 9 with port stops in Nassau and Half Moon Cay (Carnival's private island in the Bahamas)?

Linda and Halo

If you very quickly go to your vet (must be APHIS certified) and ask him to FAX the Bahamas import permit (available on USDA APHIS Pet Travel website), you MIGHT be able to get a response in time. Also ask if he can find some coronavirus vaccine. Otherwise you will not be permitted to enter Bahamian waters with your service dog even if you are not getting off the ship in Nassau or Half Moon Cay.

Is it even possible to do the paperwork for a SD for a cruise that leaves on April 9 with port stops in Nassau and Half Moon Cay (Carnival's private island in the Bahamas)?

 

Linda and Halo

Definately. Bahamas permit within a day or 2 if faxed.

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Finally got through to American Cruise Lines by way of its Facebook page and a helpful moderator there. As Roz said, no problem with service dogs, but they do officially demand documentation that the dog is a trained service dog, which is against ADA rules but maybe nobody's pointed that out to them, or perhaps it's just a way of keeping the frauds away.

 

Here's ACL's policy:

 

AMERICAN CRUISE LINES: The only animalsAmerican Cruise Lines permits on board our ships are working service dogs,which are legally defined and individually trained to meet disability-relatedneeds by performing tasks like guiding a blind person, alerting a deaf person,pulling wheelchairs, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure,or performing other special tasks. Working service dogs are not pets.

Service dogs in training are not allowedaboard.

Servicedogs are permitted to accompany the person with a disability in all publicareas, including dining venues. While in public areas, service dogs must be ona leash, harness or other restraining device. Due to health and safetyconcerns, service dogs are not permitted to eat off of the tables in the diningroom or sit on dining room chairs or tables.

Careand supervision of the service dog is the sole responsibility of the owner. Theships are not required to provide food or care for the dog. Note that theship's staff is not required to care for the dog, nor can the dog be left inthe stateroom unattended. American Cruise Lines will provide a potty boxif ordered prior to the cruises departure.

ACLmust have documents 21 days before the cruise departs.

The following documents are required: IDCard; Service Certificate; Rabies Certificate;Vaccination Records.

What ACL requires to bring your Service Dog is absolutely fair and reasonable. I hope you take this cruise with your dog.

Wexler is not happy with the 22" of snow. [ATTACH]416421[/ATTACH][ATTACH]416422[/ATTACH]

 

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Poor Wexy.....Ridiculous!!!!! Where's your ear muffs?

Yikes, that’s a lotta snow!!! Stay safe, Cindy. I always like the black Wex against white snowbank pics you post.

Me too! I'm not so sure they feel the same way!

I think Henri would like to play in the snow, but that is a lot of snow!!

 

Dianne

There is no doubt about it, Horton is a sun bather. I don't think he'd do so well in the cold snow!

I must admit I like to look at the snow but I don't do well in the cold.....I'm a whiny-baby when my hands or feet get cold!!!!!

Trooper and I went to our APHIS-affiliated vet yesterday to do the paperwork for his upcoming Panama Canal cruise. The vet told us two interesting things:

1. The Bahamas requires a coronavirus immunization, which is almost never done in the United States. The U.S. vets feel the coronavirus vaccine is old and outmoded and never worked anyway. Parvovirus vaccine, the vet said, protects against coronavirus. But Trooper couldn't enter Bahamian waters without the coronavirus shot, so the vet looked around for it . . . and there was only one vet lab in Northern Illinois that had the vaccine, and they had only one vial left. Vet had to send an aide an hour out to the far northwest burbs to get it.

2. Costa Rica now requires that dogs be treated against ticks and other exoparasites 15 or fewer days before arrival. So our vet put some liquid tick chaser on the scruff of his neck. This evidently is something new . . . a monthly Nexgard or Frontline pill won't do, as it does for other countries.

If I have learned anything while cruising with a service dog, it's to start the paperwork WAY ahead of time so your vet has time to check things and get stuff.

For those who insist on taking last minute cruises with their dogs. Your dog MUST be current on all immunizations and be completely free of parasites or skin conditions that require medication. Your absolutely must have an Aphis 7001 Form completed and signed by your Vet.

Also, what is a "tick chaser"?

Happy warm, dry weekend everyone.

A tick chaser is the same thing as a tick zapper: a veterinary solution put on the scruff of the dog's neck to eliminate ticks and other such creepy-crawlies. It qualifies as a treatment for exoparasites. By the way, the Bahamas now requires dogs to be tested and treated for both endoparasites and exoparasites NO MORE than 48 hours before the time your ship sails. If you're flying to Fort Lauderdale or Miami the day before the ship casts off, you can take a poop sample to your vet and have him check it as well as squirt the tick banisher on the dog at the same time. I.e., the Westerdam departs Fort Lauderdale at 4 p.m. this Saturday. Trooper and I are flying in Friday, after having him checked and squirted at 4 p.m. Thursday. What is ridiculous about all this is that we are going to Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas, where nobody's gonna ask for papers. (Except, of course, the ship.)

Geez, just when I'm considering taking Scooter with me next February for our cruise, they make it more difficult.

I was looking at the requirements for : St Maarten, St Kitts, Grenada, Barbados, St Lucia, there is another one but I cannot recall off the top of my head. I may just board him at the vet again. I wonder which costs more - boarding for 2 weeks or all the vet work for traveling!

Issue: it has been 2 weeks at home and I'm still breaking bad habits. Plus, he started pulling again. Sigh. I need to spend about 3 days doing nothing but working and correcting my dog. Except I don' have 3 days to find.

I also hate the idea of over medicating .

A tick chaser is the same thing as a tick zapper: a veterinary solution put on the scruff of the dog's neck to eliminate ticks and other such creepy-crawlies. It qualifies as a treatment for exoparasites. By the way, the Bahamas now requires dogs to be tested and treated for both endoparasites and exoparasites NO MORE than 48 hours before the time your ship sails. If you're flying to Fort Lauderdale or Miami the day before the ship casts off, you can take a poop sample to your vet and have him check it as well as squirt the tick banisher on the dog at the same time. I.e., the Westerdam departs Fort Lauderdale at 4 p.m. this Saturday. Trooper and I are flying in Friday, after having him checked and squirted at 4 p.m. Thursday. What is ridiculous about all this is that we are going to Half Moon Cay in the Bahamas, where nobody's gonna ask for papers. (Except, of course, the ship.)

We just went in January and were not asked to do the test for parasites. Did that just change?

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Since I and another member of this forum have been working on a book about traveling with service dogs, we have discovered that determining the health requirements for Caribbean islands is like trying to trap a litter of puppies under a rug. Things change so fast that it's hard to keep up with them. Many vets are unaware of these changes, so having a 7001 rejected by APHIS and sent back to the vet is common. Just the other day we heard an APHIS official tell a client, "Everybody who comes here has a heart attack." When you get down to it, APHIS is not trying to make trouble—it is trying to forestall a crisis when you arrive at a Caribbean island with your service dog.

We just went in January and were not asked to do the test for parasites. Did that just change?

 

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Cindy - did Wex get the coronavirus vaccine?

Dianne

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Since I and another member of this forum have been working on a book about traveling with service dogs, we have discovered that determining the health requirements for Caribbean islands is like trying to trap a litter of puppies under a rug. Things change so fast that it's hard to keep up with them. Many vets are unaware of these changes, so having a 7001 rejected by APHIS and sent back to the vet is common. Just the other day we heard an APHIS official tell a client, "Everybody who comes here has a heart attack." When you get down to it, APHIS is not trying to make trouble—it is trying to forestall a crisis when you arrive at a Caribbean island with your service dog.

In your investigations of the Aphis form I have found that the only marked changes that could cause problems is if the Vet uses abbreviations and does not spell all treatments out clearly.

It is really up to the handler to examine the form when the Vet gives it back to you and make sure that the immunization dates are clearly marked along with the spelling out of the use of HeartGuard and NexGuard, or other similar parasite treatments. Also have your Vet clearly state that your dogs skin, fur, ears and paws are in good health and your dog is in good health to travel.

Also, if your dog has had a rabies titer; remember, it is good for three years and Hawaii and Europe will NOT require it to be done yearly. So, if you're cruising every year to Europe or Hawaii, the test results are good for 3 years.

We just went in January and were not asked to do the test for parasites. Did that just change?

 

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I don’t think it’s new. On the Bahamas permit that I got two years ago, the permit language did list the coronavirus requirement as well as the 48 hrs prior fecal flotation test and parasite treatment. I wish APHIS would list these requirements on their website.

My vet said she hasn’t stocked coronavirus vaccine in years, so we skipped it. I didn’t get a new flotation test. For that trip, another country also wanted a parasite treatment 48 hrs prior, so we listed that on APHIS 7001.

Also, if your dog has had a rabies titer; remember, it is good for three years and Hawaii and Europe will NOT require it to be done yearly. So, if you're cruising every year to Europe or Hawaii, the test results are good for 3 years.

You no longer need a rabies titer for the UK and most of Europe if you are coming from the US and meet the timing requirements for microchipping and rabies vaccinations. If you do have a rabies titer, it will continue to be valid as long as your dog’s rabies vaccinations are kept up to date (i.e., he/she is revaccinated against rabies within the period of validity of the previous vaccination).

Henri’s rabies titer that I had done for our trip to Hawaii is only valid for three years in Hawaii, but is valid for the UK and Europe for her lifetime as long as she continues to be vaccinated for rabies.

Dianne

Cindy - did Wex get the coronavirus vaccine?

 

Dianne

 

 

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Not that i can see on his health records. And we were not asked to get anything. Just filled out the permit and got it.

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