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

[Valentine's Mom]

Traveling in style. This is how I keep my small service dog safe around big feet.

 

[wizard-of-roz]

That picture of Valentine is a "crack-up!" She is so cute....she makes me smile.

 

I can remember when we went to our first "workshop" after getting Brenda there was a Corgy who was working with an older man as a Hearing Dog. He was such a cute dog it was hard to believe he was a Service Dog.

 

We asked the gentleman to show us just how this Corgy worked and it was remarkable to watch how he "alerted" the man to his name being called from another room and how he would literally dance around the man to "alert" him to a noise in the room. Just amazing to see.

 

Canine Companions no longer trains Corgy's [although they were easier to get onto airplanes, etc. and they're so responsive to training] most men didn't think they were "manly" dogs. The Lab and Lab/cross became the most popular dog for everyone.

 

Thanks for the great pictures of Valentine.

[S.S. Cruisers]

Mornin' all:

We are all moved back "home". Its been a long 2 weeks, but mom is here and the traveling is done for now. It is going to be a challenge, but we will work thru it. Mom was up at 4:15 am, but thankfully went back to bed. Jezzy just headed towards her room, will probably wake her up! Travis left with Auntie and cousin last weekend. He is having a ball and doesn't want to come home! :eek: The furbabies are adjusting. No fence up yet, so Jezzy is on a leash. I don't like that, but will have have to do for now.

Gonna run and drink some coffee and read the local paper to catch up!

[wizard-of-roz]

Mornin' all:

We are all moved back "home". Its been a long 2 weeks, but mom is here and the traveling is done for now. It is going to be a challenge, but we will work thru it. Mom was up at 4:15 am, but thankfully went back to bed. Jezzy just headed towards her room, will probably wake her up! Travis left with Auntie and cousin last weekend. He is having a ball and doesn't want to come home! :eek: The furbabies are adjusting. No fence up yet, so Jezzy is on a leash. I don't like that, but will have have to do for now.

 

Gonna run and drink some coffee and read the local paper to catch up!

 

Nancy, welcome back! I hate moving, over the years I've done it a lot. Not so much lately.

 

You must be exhausted. I've missed your lovely input and, eventhough you were away we all behaved! :p

[guitarest]

Now for something a little different, we are used to me posting pictures of this ham.

 

 

Although I have other pets here; not being a normal person who deals with normal pets here is Blitz in front of my other pets.

 

 

This is not a freshwater tank; nor is it a salt water tank its both or known as brackish. Everything in this tank was saved last year from the oil that was known as the BP Spill. This is a Alantic Spade fish also known as a Saltwater Angelfish but he is not related.

 

 

This is a local catfish also known as a hardhead catfish due to its really hard skull.

 

 

The monster of the tak is also the one who will eat everything if either the fish or I drop my guard and forget to feed them. This is a Blue crab and they will eat anything. If you look closely at his claws you will see the top half has been cut in half so that grabbing dead food is something he can do although its very difficult to grab a live fish thats healthy. At least in theory its difficult he has eaten at least 10 fish in the tank.

 

 

[wizard-of-roz]

Wow! Guitarist, great shots of your "waterbabies!" The blue crab scares the "crab" out of me!!!!!

 

My son has a saltwater tank and loves his fish. They're beautiful to watch but I have no luck with them so he never asks me to babysit them......thank goodness! I love watching them eat so I'm always overfeeding them!!!! :eek:

[guitarest]

Thank you; I love my water babies and they allow me to chill after stressful days at the VA. Its true you do relax by watching them. The bog spadefish is easily 9 inches from front to rear and at least 9 inches from top to bottom; when I caught him he was the size of a quarter. Mr Blue was about 1/4 inch from point to point on his body; he is allot bigger now. and the tank once it stabilizes its not too difficult to keep going. I also need to watch over feeding with the tank since you walk by and they all gather at the side nearest to where your standing. Oh they beg for sure......

Edited June 13, 2011 by guitarest

[Valentine's Mom]

Guitarest,

 

I love the fish. We several times to do the brackish water tank. We had no luck though and I am the bigest baby when they died that my husband gave up. The blue crab looks familar. I am from Virginia and people get them by the bushal basket out of the bay. Yours is much cuter though .

[Valentine's Mom]

That picture of Valentine is a "crack-up!" She is so cute....she makes me smile.

 

I can remember when we went to our first "workshop" after getting Brenda there was a Corgy who was working with an older man as a Hearing Dog. He was such a cute dog it was hard to believe he was a Service Dog.

 

We asked the gentleman to show us just how this Corgy worked and it was remarkable to watch how he "alerted" the man to his name being called from another room and how he would literally dance around the man to "alert" him to a noise in the room. Just amazing to see.

 

Canine Companions no longer trains Corgy's [although they were easier to get onto airplanes, etc. and they're so responsive to training] most men didn't think they were "manly" dogs. The Lab and Lab/cross became the most popular dog for everyone.

 

Thanks for the great pictures of Valentine.

 

 

Valentine says thanks for the compliments! You can see why I get all the strange looks and why people say she is a pet. Can you imagine though if I tried to walk her through the busy halls on a cruiese ship or the busy streets of Rome or St Thomas? If anyone were to step on her it would break her leg! If thay happened I whould have to break their leg to.LOL I'm not over protective or anything .LOL

[Latitude 20]

I'm thinking of doing a Mexican Riviera cruise on December 10th.

It would be onboard the Sapphire Princess [the same ship we're taking on Sept. 24th]. Please come onboard!

 

Hey Roz,

 

With the potential itinerary changes (no PV or Mazatlan, just Ensenada and two days in Cabo) are you still considering this one? Leo and I are about 70% convinced we need a little break before Christmas and this sailing is sooooo inexpensive! I'm going to call my TA tomorrow and see what kind of deal we can get. If you and Mr. WoR and Miz Brenny were aboard, that'd be the icing on the cake!

 

Kathi

[Quampapetet]

Quam: I was wondering where you were! Glad you're okay and back with us. I'll be doing a Vegas run on July 17th...can't wait. Hope you saved some for me!!!!

 

Somehow, I don't think Vegas can run out of fun, haha! ;) My friends/family and I had a great time. I'd like to go back again someday to do some of the things I had scheduled but didn't get to do.

[Quampapetet]

Mornin' all:

Quam: I was also thinking about you the other day. I know once you told us if you didn't have a cruise booked that you don't visit as often. That means you missed the nasty thread on Carnival about service dogs and cruises. Actually some uniformed person started it as something like "take you pet on a Carnival cruise." It got down right nasty. Even showed pictures of Barb's own little Valentine. Thank goodness it was locked and sent to pasture. Glad you are back.

 

At least I got to read it, as they didn't remove it from being read before I found the link for it in this thread the last time I was here. I do wish I could've replied to it, but oh well! I think some ppl on there wouldn't change their mind about an elephant being skinny if the darn thing sat on them! :p

[Quampapetet]

Sandy is taking more medication that Rich's Mom. I think I am going to start calling her "Gram". At least she is not obsessed with her bowel habits.

 

Actually, we switched her from Advantage to Advantix. Fleas are really bad in Georgia so far this year, so many vets are recomending flea protection every 3 weeks instead of four......

 

Sandy is taking meds twice a day. Baths twice a week. I think I might need a flea coller before this is resolved. The rash has subsided and the licking and scratching have improved...

 

I recommend Adams brand tick & flea collars. They last for five months, but I change them every four months because it is easier to remember (same months every year - January 1, May 1, and September 1) and better if I forget to change it out right away (like this month, when I kept forgetting to do it for a few weeks - oops!). My dog hasn't had fleas and doesn't even get one tick a year, even in what I heard from other locals to be a bad tick year. We have woods surrounding three sides of our yard. (We do treat the yard, too, but the collar worked on the years before we started treating it - and I'm not even sure if the treatments for the yards are for bugs or just for the weeds.)

 

You need to make sure you get the fleas out of your house and yard. Get some food-grade (important!) Diomataceous Earth (or however it is spelled, LOL - Google will figure it out) for your carpet and yard - you can even put it on your dog and feed it to your dog, it won't harm them (or anyone else). You can look up exact directions on its use online or on the label for it (if you get it from a dog supply place), but basically you sprinkle it on your carpet and leave it for I think two days before vacuuming it (and the dead fleas) up. Also, cut up a flea collar and put the pieces in your vacuum bag/container so that any fleas that might be still alive or might hatch (D.E. only kills live ones, not eggs) in your trash won't make it.

 

There are some natural things you can put on your dog to help with the itching. Check out www.OnlyNaturalPets.com (although they tend to be pricey, so if you find a product you want to try, Google to see if you can find a better price elsewhere).

[Quampapetet]

Quam, Thanks for checking in. I think we were all wondering where you have been. Hope you won lots of money in Vegas.

 

I didn't have much time to play, but I put $20 in a penny machine and walked away with a little over $40, so not too bad (though I was up to $45+ at one point, so I guess I technically lost - I just wasn't done having fun yet then is all! :)).

 

Guitarest, Great pic of Blitz, our last service dog loved his kiddie pool, but of course Wex is the anti-water lab and he hates it!

 

That photo reminded me of how utterly DIRTY Vegas is! My dog has four white paws/three white legs/white belly and she was sooo gray with dirt just from walking around Vegas, starting on full-day one! :p I'd never seen her so dirty before! Crazy.

 

 

We asked if we just sent the MRI and med records to Mass General, if one of the 15 neurosurgeons could review them and just tell us if he thinks he should have surgery. But they said they HAVE to see him, for what I don't know. There is no physical exam they can do to see any part of the problem. But thats how they work.

 

I hope everything goes well for him!

 

They likely can't give an opinion without seeing him for legal protection reasons (not to mention health/life protection reasons for the patient...).

[Quampapetet]

That morning, we pulled into Nassau/Bahamas. We were scheduled for a para-sailing. I made sure jumpers vaccination and service dog ID were with me in my wallet with the passport. Trying to leave, security told me to go to guest services, I was pissed that they would not let me off, but within two hours port authorities gave jumper his visa. Security wanted to make sure my service dog was not taken from me by port authorities, and that he was cleared.

 

Sounds like you didn't get the required import permit from the Bahamas gov't before your trip? It is free for service dogs, but still is required to enter the Bahamas. You should send for it at least two to three months prior to your trip, as they're on "island time" and often take a while to get it back to you. I usually send it four to five months in advance.

 

Service dogs have to follow all the import regulations of the countries unless you get (a) certain regulation(s) waived (in writing) by that country/countries' gov't(s), such as for a six-month quarantine when you'll be there less than a day on a cruise.

 

As all of you know, Saint Thomas is a US possession, and mostly follows most federal laws including the ADA within reason.

 

The ADA applies fully (not "within reason") in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, etc.

 

This was by far the best vacation ever. Despite the rug rats running around, making noise and blowing UP carbon dioxide bags and throwing them at passengers, and the minor spatt in Nassau, which I will never recommend to another person with a disability who uses a service dog, this by far has been even better than staying on-site at WDW. Carnival went above and beyond to make sure we had a good time. Unlike Nassau, we have the ADA in the US, as such access challenges always get answered by me if repeated in a court of law.

 

Nassau is a great place to go, including with a service dog. I go every year (land trips) and haven't ever been denied access anywhere there. If you get questioned, you simply educate the person in friendly words/tone and then the dog's training does the rest of the work (when they see the dog really did just lay on the floor of the taxi the whole ride or under/next to the table the whole meal). (If you go on a land trip, I don't recommend using the Bahamas Humane Society as the vet who checks your dog's paperwork within 48 hours of arrival [a requirement for entering the Bahamas on a land trip]. There are other vets you can go to who are better.)

[wizard-of-roz]

Hey Roz,

 

With the potential itinerary changes (no PV or Mazatlan, just Ensenada and two days in Cabo) are you still considering this one? Leo and I are about 70% convinced we need a little break before Christmas and this sailing is sooooo inexpensive! I'm going to call my TA tomorrow and see what kind of deal we can get. If you and Mr. WoR and Miz Brenny were aboard, that'd be the icing on the cake!

 

Kathi

 

Kathi, I have not booked it yet. If I did it, I would be going by myself with Brenda....Just the two of us! At least that's what's in my head. I would love to meet you onboard. And, I really don't care where the ship goes....it would be all about the ship.

 

I'll let you know how the planning goes. If I did it I'd book it when I'm onboard in September to get the OBC's.

[wizard-of-roz]

Valentine says thanks for the compliments! You can see why I get all the strange looks and why people say she is a pet. Can you imagine though if I tried to walk her through the busy halls on a cruiese ship or the busy streets of Rome or St Thomas? If anyone were to step on her it would break her leg! If thay happened I whould have to break their leg to.LOL I'm not over protective or anything .LOL

 

I so agree with you! Brenda's a big girl and easy to see....but' date=' once we were onboard the Celebrity Summit and a truly dumb !@# rolled over her tail with his wheelchair [i had never heard her cry before or after that incident'] and, I never want to again. I swear Morey had to hold me back from attacking the guy.

Ever since then I NEVER allow enough room for anything or anyone to walk or wheel near enough to where they could possibly hurt her!

Your a good Mommy to protect her so well!

[wizard-of-roz]

Somehow, I don't think Vegas can run out of fun, haha! ;) My friends/family and I had a great time. I'd like to go back again someday to do some of the things I had scheduled but didn't get to do.

 

I'm not a gambler but I do love the ambiance, people, food and entertainment. I also like the drive. It either gives me time to listen to my books on tape or have really juicey conversations with my fellow passengers.

This time I'm going with two friends and we're staying at the Wynn.

[wizard-of-roz]

At least I got to read it, as they didn't remove it from being read before I found the link for it in this thread the last time I was here. I do wish I could've replied to it, but oh well! I think some ppl on there wouldn't change their mind about an elephant being skinny if the darn thing sat on them! :p

 

Yep, all that thread was missing was something wise from Quam!!!!!

[Latitude 20]

Kathi, I have not booked it yet. If I did it, I would be going by myself with Brenda....Just the two of us! At least that's what's in my head. I would love to meet you onboard. And, I really don't care where the ship goes....it would be all about the ship.

 

I'll let you know how the planning goes. If I did it I'd book it when I'm onboard in September to get the OBC's.

 

I think we're going to wait for a little while to book also even though we're almost positive we're going. A few on the Princess board are already cancelling their bookings because of the itinerary change so the price may be headed even lower.

[wizard-of-roz]

I think we're going to wait for a little while to book also even though we're almost positive we're going. A few on the Princess board are already cancelling their bookings because of the itinerary change so the price may be headed even lower.

 

Lower would be great. I want to wait until I'm onboard in September to make future plans. I want to use my FCC's and I like getting the OBC's.

I would do the December 10th cruise and they're still showing all the ports as usual. I wouldn't care if they made changes to the itinerary since it's going to be about the ship and just plain relaxing for me!!!!!

[cjborne2]

Took Ollie to the vet today for his Canadian paperwork. The vet checked him out, lifted up his tail and said "ut oh!" He had a cyst on his rear that was not there in April before the Mexico trip. So, $700+ later, he had surgery this afternoon to remove it. (He needed heart worm and frontline too and 2 other vaccines so that was included in the price). Just what we needed in addition to the home repairs (some planned, some emergency) that we've been doing. But, the international certificate is ready to go and he should be fine before we leave next week.

[cjborne2]

I am assuming that I don't need the USDA stamp for Canada. Is that right. I believe someone on this thread told me that is the case. I have time to get to Annapolis if need be.

[cjborne2]

Called the USDA this morning and the answer appears to be no, I don't need the papers signed, which is what I thought. It appears that Canada is fairly simple. Has that been your experiences as well?

[guitarest]

Sandy is taking more medication that Rich's Mom. I think I am going to start calling her "Gram". At least she is not obsessed with her bowel habits.

 

Actually, we switched her from Advantage to Advantix. Fleas are really bad in Georgia so far this year, so many vets are recomending flea protection every 3 weeks instead of four......

 

Sandy is taking meds twice a day. Baths twice a week. I think I might need a flea coller before this is resolved. The rash has subsided and the licking and scratching have improved...

 

I have three babies and my next door neighbor has a few babies also, he has a flea problem and we do not. The difference is that I have the dogs on a oral flea preventive called Comfortis and its slightly better than program IMO. Prior to switching to a oral flea prevention we used everything and we also did baths all the time and it did not help. The baths were usually after two weeks of applying the medicine on the dogs. Within 30 minutes of giving a oral pill (my guys love the flavor) you will see dead fleas if your dog has active fleas. Its a once a month program and works great for me without getting the medicine all over my house and furniture unlike the drops that get all over everything.