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

[wizard-of-roz]

Some not so good news from our little world. John has been having some stomach spasms for the past 2 weeks. He finally went to the doctors on Wednesday. Since everything around here takes weeks and/or months to get an appointment, the doc thought it would be a good idea for us to go to the emergency room and he would call there and have them do a few tests. Well 7 hours later :mad: we finally made it home. They think (and I stress think) he has a viral intestinal infection, even though he is not having any problems in that area. But they also think he might have a bladder stone. Of course I had never heard of a stone in the bladder but I have been reading about it and it can be. It can either be a stone from the bladder or a stone that traveled from the kidneys. Anyway of course it will take weeks for him to get an appointment with the urologist. He is trying to get the doctor to get him in sooner. So now he has been home for the last 2 days. :mad: I'm going to need calgon to take me away!! :eek:

 

It's been in the 80's here today and 90 yesterday.......What the heck!!!!

Oh! John, please feel better. I hope it's simple and gone soon!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

I'm going to start looking at clothes and collars for our sea adventure soon!

[wizard-of-roz]

We just booked it the other day. We were waiting for the price to come down but decided to book now and hope it comes down so we can get the cheaper price. Since they only have this cruise a few times a year, we wanted to make sure we got the cabin we wanted.

 

What cruiseline you going on? Where you going?

 

Congratulations Cindy, it's so good to hear that you're booked and even better to have a cruise to look forward to, no matter how long the wait!

[wizard-of-roz]

:D It's a 10 dayer Roz!! Going to private island, Grand Turk, Dominican, Aruba, Curacao, and Bonaire. I've wanted to do this cruise for a long time. It only goes a few times a year so it's been hard to find a good time to go. Mainly because John likes to extend his school vacations. This one won't be until February, so John can extend his school vacation.

 

You are leaving in 2 weeks!!! :eek: How exciting!! And like you said, it's all about the ship for me too. Although it's nice to go somewhere we haven't been before.

 

Wow! This one really sounds exciting. 10 days is such a great cruise. It's not too much and gives you enough days to really unwind and enjoy your vacation. Sounds wonderful!

You know how fast those two weeks will go.....I've got to start focusing on clothes, Debi wants to do both formal nights and I think we'll visit the kids in San Francisco too. Horton's collars are all ready and I bought him some new toys to focus on and destroy!

[wizard-of-roz]

Hi everybody' date='

 

I posted a "hello" a while back (before I was teamed up with my service dog), but now my family is starting the initial planning stages for our first cruise with a SD. Owen and I have been teamed up since December, so we will have been together about 8 months by the time we cruise.

 

I wanted to get input from experienced cruisers on (1) best cruise line options and (2) best ports to travel to with a SD.

 

Personally, I would be happy with staying on the ship the entire time, but I know with some countries you still have to worry about customs clearing your SD even if you won't be getting off the ship. I am also very nervous about the possibility of taking Owen off the ship with me in an unsafe country, and would not be doing so, even if my family did get off the ship.

 

However, my parents will be moving overseas this summer and it will be our last family vacation for a while (and the last time I see them until the holidays), so if it were safe to get off the ship with Owen and be with my family, I would like to do so.

 

That being said, what would your recommendations be for a relatively hassle-free cruise?

 

My family is very open to where we go; they want to leave out of Seattle, a California port, or Galveston but as to the cruise we do, they seem to be very open to different options right now. We are looking at traveling in July of this year.

 

Any ideas/suggestions?

 

I'm sure I'll have loads of questions about the actual cruise once we get closer, but for right now we just want to get something booked![/quote']

 

Katherine: Welcome back and congratulations on receiving Owen. Isn't it wonderful having a Service Dog in your life!!! I know it's all very new for you but it will get easier and easier and more and more wonderful and enriching for you both.

 

I'm so glad to hear that you will be cruising with Owen. May I make a recommendation of doing a California Coastal with your family, onboard a Princess ship, out of San Pedro. First of all, they're very, very savvy on Service Dogs, the how's and why's and San Pedro is an extremely "user friendly" port. It has very easy access, parking and all the ammenities you'll ever need. The port folks are so helpful and willing to make your cruise experience a good one.

 

I'm suggesting a "country friendly" cruise for your very first one. It will help if you have very little road-blocks to stumble over for the first time. This cruise does stop in Mexico [Ensenada] so you can get the feel for a foreign port along the way.

 

Your paperwork will be simple and Owen won't need any drastic measures to get onboard and off.

 

The ports you'll be visiting are easy and friendly. Some of them do require using a tender boat but with the assistance of the crew or family members, hopefully it won't be too difficult for you.

 

You'll need a recent visit to Owen's Vet, and the Intl. Travel Cert.; recent immunizations and good I.D. for both you and Owen. Make 3 copies; keep them handy and ready to show to: The registration at the dock; the immigration officials and the ship's Purser. Pack Owen's food/toys/dishes and make sure you call Princess to have Owen's potty box placed near your cabin and, you're 99% ready to have a fabulous cruising experience. The other 1% is all in your attitude.

 

Call Princess and speak with the Special Access Dept. and you'll be on your way.

Once your booked come back and we'll talk details.

[wizard-of-roz]

So, Carnival has had another incident, thankfully not in the middle of the ocean this time. All the passengers had to fly back to Florida from St. Maarten, the port of call where the ship was docked when the ship's problem began. Thankfully, that's a country that doesn't have many dog import requirements, so anybody with a service dog shouldn't have had a problem getting off the ship to get into a hotel or onto a plane. But, what if such a problem had happened at a port where the dog was not qualified to get off the ship, such as Jamaica (doesn't allow dogs), Barbados (doesn't allow dogs not coming directly from the UK), or if the owner didn't do rabies titres for countries such as Cayman Islands, St. Lucia, and St. Kitts? I wonder what would happen?

 

P.S. I decided not to go on the cruise, but my friends also decided not to go, at least the week we had cabins on hold for. (Too bad, as I had a hard-to-get one on hold!) If they choose to go on the same itinerary/ship later, I won't go, but might go if they choose a different one.

 

Boy, we'd really propose problems for a ship that got stuck and even worse a port that didn't allow our dogs. We, of course, would NEVER be separated from our dogs so I don't know how the ship would handle us......And, I hope I NEVER have to find out, personally!

[wizard-of-roz]

It's the February 7th one. As we know John likes to extend the school vacation so when we get back he has the week off. ;)

 

Boy Carnival is sure having it's problems.

 

It really sounds like someone's playing tricks on poor Carnival. I'm not a huge Carnival fan but I find them fun when I've done the same ports over and over and I want to kick-it-up a notch! It's fun to be an observer onboard Carnival; some of the people are a riot!

[cruisin_cutie216]

I raise service dogs here in MI for Leader Dogs for the Blind. I am very glad that I found this thread! Love reading the information that's presented here and its so informative and helpful.

 

Roz: I know exactly how you feel about the black hair! I raised a black lab for Leader Dog (my first one) and I'm STILL finding black hair everywhere (and she went back last September)! Can't wait to hear about your upcoming cruise!

 

Missy

[dobiemom]

[wizard-of-roz]

I raise service dogs here in MI for Leader Dogs for the Blind. I am very glad that I found this thread! Love reading the information that's presented here and its so informative and helpful.

 

Roz: I know exactly how you feel about the black hair! I raised a black lab for Leader Dog (my first one) and I'm STILL finding black hair everywhere (and she went back last September)! Can't wait to hear about your upcoming cruise!

 

Missy

 

Hi Missy, Welcome! Isn't it hysterical how that darn Black Lab hair is incidious.....it clings and lingers and hangs on to everything!!!! I can't get dressed without finding it on something in my wardrobe; my shoes, my shirts, my pants, my purse, my luggage, etc., etc.!

Thank you for all the work you put into these amazing dogs only to give them away to others who will make them a life partner. Thank you, thank you!!!!!!

[wizard-of-roz]

 

 

Good to hear from you and you have a super St. Patty's Day!

[DisneyKidsDad]

My family and I and some friends have started looking into a Southern Caribbean cruise on RCL next summer. It starts and ends in San Juan, PR. The ports are St. Croix, USVI, St. Maartin, St. Johns, Antigua, Castries, St. Lucia and Bridgetown, Barbados. How much of a service dog permit, titer test expense and nightmare are we looking at with all these ports. The ship is The Jewel Of The Seas. It has 1050 cabins. 19 cabins are H/C accessible. 8 sleep 3 or 4 people. Only 2 have a balcony for the dogs potty box. Both of them are Junior Suites. And people wonder why we have to book early. :confused:

[wizard-of-roz]

My family and I and some friends have started looking into a Southern Caribbean cruise on RCL next summer. It starts and ends in San Juan, PR. The ports are St. Croix, USVI, St. Maartin, St. Johns, Antigua, Castries, St. Lucia and Bridgetown, Barbados. How much of a service dog permit, titer test expense and nightmare are we looking at with all these ports. The ship is The Jewel Of The Seas. It has 1050 cabins. 19 cabins are H/C accessible. 8 sleep 3 or 4 people. Only 2 have a balcony for the dogs potty box. Both of them are Junior Suites. And people wonder why we have to book early. :confused:

 

Ridiculous about only having two cabins for a potty box. I would contact the "access" Dept. And, request that the potty box be placed elsewhere. They're way too limiting on your cabin availability and the pottybox. I bet that Junior Suites costs more than a regular balcony cabin!

They have stairwells and they have crew closets where they store their vaccums, etc. Does the potty need to be on your balcony? The stairwells [located at the very forward and aft of the ship] and the maintenance closets on each deck at the aft, forward and mid ship are great locations for the potty box.

If you need the box on your veranda than all of the above is mute, anyway.

Your cruise sounds very exciting and funfilled. I love Puerto Rico. The US Virgin Islands is easy.....Barbado's has some issues with entrance and Service Dogs. You know my feelings on this......Stay on the ship, do not give $$$$$ to anyone who insists that they are immigration officials [i told them I had no cash] and that my cruise was paid for with a credit card that had a small limit! They walked away from me in a "huff!" Oh! Well! They will NOT confiscate your dog......they don't want your dog!!!!! They want $$$$$$, don't be so free to offer any!

I know others have been to some of your ports and hopefully they will come back and inform you more.

Booking early is certainly the cure for having a well planned cruise with a Service Dog in tow!

Edited March 18, 2013 by wizard-of-roz

[cjborne2]

We are cruising on Carnival this summer. I hope they get their act together by then!

 

I called them last week to find out what I need for the trip. They referred me to a website (pet travel . com I think) for information on what I need. We are going to the Bahamas. She emailed me an import permit for the Bahamas and I know I need the international health certificate but I seemed to know more than she did! Luckily we have done the Bahamas once before with Ollie and I'm really more concerned with getting my kids' passports renewed than I am about the dog!

 

Does anyone know if the doors on Carnival ships (specifically Conquest) are magnetic?

[wizard-of-roz]

We are cruising on Carnival this summer. I hope they get their act together by then!

 

I called them last week to find out what I need for the trip. They referred me to a website (pet travel . com I think) for information on what I need. We are going to the Bahamas. She emailed me an import permit for the Bahamas and I know I need the international health certificate but I seemed to know more than she did! Luckily we have done the Bahamas once before with Ollie and I'm really more concerned with getting my kids' passports renewed than I am about the dog!

 

Does anyone know if the doors on Carnival ships (specifically Conquest) are magnetic?

 

I'm sorry I don't know about the doors on Conquest - I bet Carnival will be the number one cruise ships to take by this summer. They're going to be checking and re-checking all their ships because it's costing them a bloody fortune to keep-up with the non-service problems they've been having.

I would call their Guest Access Services and ask all your good questions concerning their ships, their ports and what will be needed for Ollie. 1-800-438-6744 - Ext: 70025

[DisneyKidsDad]

Ridiculous about only having two cabins for a potty box. I would contact the "access" Dept. And, request that the potty box be placed elsewhere. They're way too limiting on your cabin availability and the pottybox. I bet that Junior Suites costs more than a regular balcony cabin!

 

They have stairwells and they have crew closets where they store their vaccums, etc. Does the potty need to be on your balcony? The stairwells [located at the very forward and aft of the ship] and the maintenance closets on each deck at the aft, forward and mid ship are great locations for the potty box.

 

If you need the box on your veranda than all of the above is mute, anyway.

 

Your cruise sounds very exciting and funfilled. I love Puerto Rico. The US Virgin Islands is easy.....Barbado's has some issues with entrance and Service Dogs. You know my feelings on this......Stay on the ship, do not give $$$$$ to anyone who insists that they are immigration officials [i told them I had no cash] and that my cruise was paid for with a credit card that had a small limit! They walked away from me in a "huff!" Oh! Well! They will NOT confiscate your dog......they don't want your dog!!!!! They want $$$$$$, don't be so free to offer any!

 

I know others have been to some of your ports and hopefully they will come back and inform you more.

 

Booking early is certainly the cure for having a well planned cruise with a Service Dog in tow!

 

Actually we like having the box on the balcony. It saves alot of time. Also, we like to have the balcony ourselves. I'm just wondering if it's going to be worth taking Orson on this cruise or letting him have his own vacation. That's if we decide on this cruise at all. First we have to get back from Alaska.

[cjborne2]

That number for Carnival is the one I called and referred me to the website!

 

Carnival doesn't put the box on the balcony for "safety reasons". That was one question they were able to answer.

 

DKD, which ship are going sailing on to Alaska? We were on the Wonder. They put the box at the back of the ship on a deck with lounge chairs. We had to get a key since it was not always unlocked. It was a little bit of a hassle to get it right since they didn't have the box available yet when we first boarded.

 

The first time we were on the Wonder we had a handicapped room with a huge balcony. They put the potty box on the balcony that time.

[DisneyKidsDad]

That number for Carnival is the one I called and referred me to the website!

 

Carnival doesn't put the box on the balcony for "safety reasons". That was one question they were able to answer.

 

DKD, which ship are going sailing on to Alaska? We were on the Wonder. They put the box at the back of the ship on a deck with lounge chairs. We had to get a key since it was not always unlocked. It was a little bit of a hassle to get it right since they didn't have the box available yet when we first boarded.

 

The first time we were on the Wonder we had a handicapped room with a huge balcony. They put the potty box on the balcony that time.

 

We are also on the Wonder. We are going to have them put the "Kiddie Pool" potty box on our balcony. We have been on the Wonder once before and the Magic twice. We have always had it on our balcony. Our cabin is on the very back of the ship.

[rangeley]

My family and I and some friends have started looking into a Southern Caribbean cruise on RCL next summer. It starts and ends in San Juan, PR. The ports are St. Croix, USVI, St. Maartin, St. Johns, Antigua, Castries, St. Lucia and Bridgetown, Barbados. How much of a service dog permit, titer test expense and nightmare are we looking at with all these ports. The ship is The Jewel Of The Seas. It has 1050 cabins. 19 cabins are H/C accessible. 8 sleep 3 or 4 people. Only 2 have a balcony for the dogs potty box. Both of them are Junior Suites. And people wonder why we have to book early. :confused:

 

Den, PR, St Croix, St Martin and St John are just the regular health certificate. Barbados, NO dogs at all, in fact they wouldn't even let John off. They have a trolley from the ship to the dock and since he couldn't get on it, they wouldn't let him go on the dock at all. St Lucia wants a titer, we didn't do one but they let us get off for a small fee! :mad: Think it was 25.00 something like that. That is the only place we ever payed for, and will never pay again. Besides there wasn't much to see at the dock. Do not do any unnecessary shots. Grand Turk has now gotten ridiculous on their requirements and wanted 50.00. We will stay on the ship in that case. We ended up getting off because we had a sitter for the dog. Antigua, no clue.

[DisneyKidsDad]

Den, PR, St Croix, St Martin and St John are just the regular health certificate. Barbados, NO dogs at all, in fact they wouldn't even let John off. They have a trolley from the ship to the dock and since he couldn't get on it, they wouldn't let him go on the dock at all. St Lucia wants a titer, we didn't do one but they let us get off for a small fee! :mad: Think it was 25.00 something like that. That is the only place we ever payed for, and will never pay again. Besides there wasn't much to see at the dock. Do not do any unnecessary shots. Grand Turk has now gotten ridiculous on their requirements and wanted 50.00. We will stay on the ship in that case. We ended up getting off because we had a sitter for the dog. Antigua, no clue.

 

Thanks Cindy,

This is great information. I'm thinking St. Lucia is gonna be like Barbados. Orson just might be taking his own vacation. Which might not be a bad thing with the heat.

[rangeley]

Thanks Cindy,

 

This is great information. I'm thinking St. Lucia is gonna be like Barbados. Orson just might be taking his own vacation. Which might not be a bad thing with the heat.

 

Glad I had information that could actually help someone!! :D

[DisneyKidsDad]

So I got an e-mail back from Antigua. This comes from their Vet. Dept. Orson will need a Titer test and a microchip. He has one. Then they charge $50 for the permit. But wait...there's more!

The Comptroller of Customs (nice title) charges sometimes but there

is no set fee. They will ask what the cost of the animal is or what is his value and base the fee off that. So I guess I tell them that Orson is a CCI Service Dog and is valued at $50,000!! That should

work, right folks? Between this and not being allowed off the ship in Barbados, if we decide to take this cruise, Orson will not be going.

[wizard-of-roz]

Actually we like having the box on the balcony. It saves alot of time. Also, we like to have the balcony ourselves. I'm just wondering if it's going to be worth taking Orson on this cruise or letting him have his own vacation. That's if we decide on this cruise at all. First we have to get back from Alaska.

 

What? Cruising without Orson!!!! I'm coming over and getting him, he can cruise with Horty and me and our dang stairwell!

Princess will NOT put the pottybox on the veranda any more. They don't want the neighbors complaining. It's okay, I like the stairwell. It's near my cabin and, I go in my PJ's.

[wizard-of-roz]

So I got an e-mail back from Antigua. This comes from their Vet. Dept. Orson will need a Titer test and a microchip. He has one. Then they charge $50 for the permit. But wait...there's more!

The Comptroller of Customs (nice title) charges sometimes but there

is no set fee. They will ask what the cost of the animal is or what is his value and base the fee off that. So I guess I tell them that Orson is a CCI Service Dog and is valued at $50,000!! That should

work, right folks? Between this and not being allowed off the ship in Barbados, if we decide to take this cruise, Orson will not be going.

 

Another reason for me to stay out of Antiqua! :( Do they still charge if the dog doesn't leave the ship?

[rangeley]

So I got an e-mail back from Antigua. This comes from their Vet. Dept. Orson will need a Titer test and a microchip. He has one. Then they charge $50 for the permit. But wait...there's more!

The Comptroller of Customs (nice title) charges sometimes but there

is no set fee. They will ask what the cost of the animal is or what is his value and base the fee off that. So I guess I tell them that Orson is a CCI Service Dog and is valued at $50,000!! That should

work, right folks? Between this and not being allowed off the ship in Barbados, if we decide to take this cruise, Orson will not be going.

 

You just stay on the ship in those ports. We don't mind not getting off in some ports. Most of the islands it's hard to find any handicapped transportation. We usually go to the shops at the dock and get back on the ship. Wex doesnt do good in the heat so we don't leave the ship for long. Sometimes the best days are when everyone gets off and we enjoy the peace and quiet.

[rangeley]

Another reason for me to stay out of Antiqua! :( Do they still charge if the dog doesn't leave the ship?

 

You do not have to pay or fill out any forms for that island if you don't get off the ship.