Dog on Royal Princess

[e2011]

There was someone with a lap dog on our Royal Cruise last week. I was not aware dogs were allowed on cruise ships? I know some folks call them emotional therapy dogs but how can the poor dog relieve itself on the ship?

[Host Carolyn]

There was someone with a lap dog on our Royal Cruise last week. I was not aware dogs were allowed on cruise ships? I know some folks call them emotional therapy dogs but how can the poor dog relieve itself on the ship?

 

As I understand it from the guy's mother, the dog was a "seeing eye dog for the deaf"... which I've not heard of. The guy had hearing aids and I think was pretty good at lip reading, could definitely talk. She was a certified service dog. I have a certified therapy dog and am going to just ask about this because I'm curious and have never heard of a seeing eye dog for the deaf. She was very well behaved but ran like a banshee on the beach at Grand Turk .. very happy doggie to get down and play :)

[DrivesLikeMario]

Coral could explain it better than I can, but from what I understand, they build a little grass area for the dog to relieve itself on the balcony.

[windsor26]

It is called the "poop deck" :D:D:D

 

They have lots of hearing dogs for the deaf in the UK They use rescued dogs from the pound mostly.:)

[tonit964]

Coral could explain it better than I can, but from what I understand, they build a little grass area for the dog to relieve itself on the balcony.

 

We have seen these "grass box areas" tucked in a corner on the promenade deck as well.

 

Have seen service dogs on several of our cruises.

 

The last one on the Sapphire, there was a blind couple with two beautiful Labs, one white, one black, that would escort them all over the ship. Saw them in the casino one night and the dogs were laying under the table while the guests were gambling.

[thyme2go]

The little dog is trained to alert the deaf person to sounds......such as a knock on the door, an alarm clock, etc. All things that aren't accommodated on a cruise ship. It's a legitimate service dog. And yes, service dogs do get breaks from 'working'....a romp on the beach would be a really fun one! For those who have therapy dogs and take them to hospitals, etc..they are NOT service dogs. I've seen people abuse the service dog requirement......it is specific to a disability defined by a Dr, and the dog provides an adaptive response for the disability. :)

[nana541]

Accidentally stumbled upon this thread and I happen to live in a community that has a "Dogs for the Deaf" training facility and have toured it with school children several times.

These dogs (all shapes, sizes and breeds) are highly trained and they send these dogs all over the world. They are very expensive and have a big waiting list.

 

Google "Dog's for the Deaf" in Central Point Oregon

[gcvt]

When we sailed on RCCL last year, they had 8 or 10 dogs on board just to train them how to work on cruise ships. They made a pre-sailing announcement about the dogs and training staff over the PA system. We were asked not to pet the dogs, etc. We ran into one of the trainers and her dog in an elevator and the GF asked what the dogs name was. The trainer politely declined to tell so as not to provide a distraction for the dog. We saw them quite often - one dog/trainer couple was on the aft balcony below us - and thought it was very interesting.

 

There's also this...from http://www.cunard.com/frequent-questions/

 

Are dogs welcome?

Queen Mary 2’s kennel programme is available on all Transatlantic Crossings between New York and Southampton in either direction, and is managed by a full-time Kennel Master who takes care of responsibilities such as feeding, walking and cleaning the ship’s 12 spacious kennels. Travelling dogs and cats also receive a complimentary gift pack. The kennels and adjacent indoor and outdoor walking areas are open throughout the day, enabling guests to spend significant time with their pets. Reservations for the kennels may be made at time of booking, and are based on availability. Contact Cunard for fees, details and additional requirements. All animals must be in compliance with the Pets Travel Scheme and in possession of a pet passport.

Edited November 6, 2013 by gcvt

[rdsqrl]

I know all about not distracting working dogs, but not to tell you the dog's name? Can you say "control freak"?

[Ren1216]

The last one on the Sapphire, there was a blind couple with two beautiful Labs, one white, one black, that would escort them all over the ship. Saw them in the casino one night and the dogs were laying under the table while the guests were gambling.

 

Not trying to be a smarta**, honestly..... how do blind people gamble?

[Judycpro]

Actually, on a recent cruise there was a gentleman that had very poor eyesight, I believe legally blind. Someone was telling him the cards being dealt. The people with the seeing eye dogs may not have been totally blind.

[gcvt]

I know all about not distracting working dogs, but not to tell you the dog's name? Can you say "control freak"?

 

They were just beginning to train the dogs and didn't want them distracted by passengers calling them by name. I can understand that. I did scratch his head when the trainer was distracted by another passenger. Being away from our black lab is the worst part of cruising - I needed a quick fix :D

[rdsqrl]

They were just beginning to train the dogs and didn't want them distracted by passengers calling them by name. I can understand that. I did scratch his head when the trainer was distracted by another passenger. Being away from our black lab is the worst part of cruising - I needed a quick fix :D

Maybe Princess needs to have dogs onboard for passengers to play with. It could be a fee-venue, like the Sanctuary, where you could go cuddle dogs and play catch: call it The Pooch Pad. This is brilliant!

 

[SwissDave]

I think it's great that deaf or blind people are able to cruise thanks to their service dogs. I for one would have no problem sharing a table with them and have their dogs lying quietly under the table while eating.

 

When I lived in the UK the only charities I supported were guide dogs for the blind and more particularly hearing dogs for the deaf, as it is a much smaller charity that does fantastic work.

 

Dogs rule :)

[Coral]

I have traveled 20 plus times with my mom and her Seeing Eye dogs - we have had 2 different ones through out the years. We were one of the first and were written up in Cruise Travel Magazine for it.

 

They always setup an area away from passengers that is a relief area for the dog. Princess prefers to use mulch but our dogs never adjusted to mulch. We would either have a small piece of sod or on our last few cruises when the sod got put on the wrong ship, they used left over greenery from flower clippings (with out thorns). On our past several cruises, we had an aft cabin on Emerald deck and we had our area setup in the crew staircase. I have also seen areas setup off of Promenade deck at other times.

 

After saying that, we were often the first ones off the ship as there is nothing like the real thing on land.

 

Princess has been great with dealing with our Seeing Eye dog as we have traveled since 1997 or 98 with one. We also cruised other lines but Princess had been the best to work with. Maybe other lines have caught up as when we sailed RCCL and Celebrity back in the early days, they were clueless. I have friends who sail Celebrity with their dog and swear by them now. Service dogs have become more common and having them on ships are also more common now. Whenever we would sail on Princess in the early days and they were told there was going to be a dog on the ship, the employees said they knew it was us as they were only familiar with us bringing our dog.

 

There are other types of service dogs such as seizure dogs and hearing dogs.

 

As far as gambling - my mom, who couldn't see, definitely used the casino and did the slots which really doesn't require vision.

[Coral]

I know all about not distracting working dogs, but not to tell you the dog's name? Can you say "control freak"?

 

Once they are trained, it probably is not an issue. It seemed like everyone on the ship knew our dogs names. Staff called them the most popular passenger on the ship. If my mom was sitting down somewhere, we had no problems with people coming up to us and petting the dog. We did ask if the dog was guiding my mom to not distract the dog purely for the fact that if we were stopped when walking each time, it would take us hours to get from one end of the ship to the other end.

[Nomsayin]

Being away from our black lab is the worst part of cruising - I needed a quick fix :D

 

Amen. We've actually started taking shorter itineraries because we don't like being away from our two Chesapeake Bay Retrievers. IMHO, if someone could figure out how to run a practical pet-friendly cruise line, they'd have a gold mine.

[macusr]

We were on the same cruise. The dog's name is Honey and she was just adorable.

[commodoredave]

When we sailed on RCCL last year, they had 8 or 10 dogs on board just to train them how to work on cruise ships.

 

Maybe Costa could train the dogs to be ship captains. :D

[Bentley5700]

Amen. We've actually started taking shorter itineraries because we don't like being away from our two Chesapeake Bay Retrievers. IMHO, if someone could figure out how to run a practical pet-friendly cruise line, they'd have a gold mine.

 

Amen to that. I really miss our critters when I leave.

[timetravler]

I know Honey very well. She is not a seeing eye dog for the deaf. .She is a guide dog for the deaf. She went through nine months of training and more. The paper work alone to have a true service dog like Honey would make your head spin, let alone many vet visits, shots, and certificates needed to have a service dog on board. One can not have a fake service dog on a cruise. Anyone who does not think a guide dog for the deaf is necessary should try living in a silent world for just one hour. Honey is one of the sweetest service dogs I have had the pleasure of knowing. If you are on a cruise do not be afraid to ask the owner about these wonderful service dogs. God bless Honey and all service dogs.

[leavingocalaagain]

Princess hosted 25 dogs in training in 2011. Learn more here:

[MommaBear55]

They were just beginning to train the dogs and didn't want them distracted by passengers calling them by name. I can understand that. I did scratch his head when the trainer was distracted by another passenger. Being away from our black lab is the worst part of cruising - I needed a quick fix :D

 

I am puzzled. There was a general announcement not to interfere with training, not to approach the dogs or touch the dogs, but you felt it was okay to pet the dog? The training is lengthy, up to 36 months of intense daily training and it needs to be consistent and is very repetitive. Even distracting the dog by saying the name out of context sends the wrong message. Later in the training they actually do distraction training.

 

I understand the lure of dogs, as I was a breeder of labs for many years and absolutely adore labs. We had some of our dogs go to NEADS, which actually starts their dogs in prisons to do the initial obedience training before the specialty training for the specific disability.

[5326jan]

We've been on a couple cruises with service dogs. One was "seeing eye" the other was "emotional comfort". On both occasions there was a "grass patch" up on the top deck near the funnel.

 

I never saw the beagle that was the emotional comfort dog out of the man's arms. It was heartbreaking to see how much he needed her. Maybe PTSD or some kind of brain injury?

 

The guide dog looked like a "pro" and wasn't phased by anything around him.

[Gunner22aa]

My last job in the military before retirement next year is running an organization that cares for our ill and injured. We have all kinds of service dogs around including "comfort dogs" that are owned by some with cases of PTSD or Operational Stress Injuries as we now call it. They provide a great service to those who need them and I know of at least one that has been on a cruise.