Disney cruise and guide dog

[cjborne2]

Funny you mention the other working dogs at the docks. When we were driving up to the first layer of security at the terminal, the woman working at the booth warned us ahead of time. I got out of the car first and told the man with the working dog that DH had one too. He appreciated the heads up and we were able to keep the dogs safely away from each other.

 

Overall, Disney was great in helping us get whatever we needed both in the parks and on the ship. The photos with Ollie and Pluto are priceless too.

[wizard-of-roz]

You've got to share those Plute and Ollie pictures with all of us!!!!

[cjborne2]

[cjborne2]

On the beach at Castaway Cay.

[cjborne2]

Here's one of all of us.

[cjborne2]

I love this picture. This is at the Chef Mickey dinner at Disney World.

[cjborne2]

I suppose I should take a step back and tell you a little about the trip. We left June 11 for Florida and began our Walt Disney World adventure the next day. We met up with my husband’s family at the airport. We spent 3 days at the parks. I felt we were pretty prepared for the dog and the heat. I purchased some paw wax to use on Ollie’s feet to protect them from the hot pavement. We learned that the boots worked better. He really does not like the boots, but quickly figured out that they were helpful.

 

We boarded the Wonder on Father’s Day. We had cabin 7638. What a room! My MIL has been on many cruises with her father, who uses a wheelchair. She said that this handicapped room was the biggest one she had ever seen. We initially had an inside cabin but after I spoke to someone at the cruise disability dept., we were moved to this room so the “relief station” could be put on the veranda. It was a kiddie pool with some turf. I have pictures of the room and veranda if any one is interested in seeing them. The only “complaint” could have about the room is that it shook every morning when we were docking. It was a small price to pay in exchange for all the space we had in the room.

 

We had a really nice time at Castaway Cay the first day. The weather was perfect: sunny and hot. We swam with the stingrays. (Ollie stayed with my FIL). We snapped a few photos and DH and the pup went back to the ship while the kids and I stayed out a little more. We had lunch at Cookies BBQ. I promised them they could play at Scuttle’s Cove. While they were safely and happily occupied, I purchased and mailed a post card to each kid. The island is just beautiful. My husband and I are not “beach people” but it is hard to ignore how beautiful and peaceful the beach is. The kids loved the sand.

 

The second day was a Nassau day. Initially we were not going to get off the ship for 2 reasons. First, we didn’t have an “at sea” day since there were 2 stops at Castaway Cay. Second, I had read that the Bahamas does not have dog access laws like the US has and not all places would allow the dog to enter. After watching an infomercial on the TV for the “free” tote and sapphire you can get on the island, we went to inquire about that. DH and I (and the pup) got off the ship for about an hour. We had no access problems. The kids stayed in the Oceaneer Club where they happily made chocolate chip cookies. We walked around for a bit then it was back to the ship to get the kids. We all re-grouped and got off the ship again for our glass bottom boat tour.

 

Our third day was a bit of a disappointment because of the weather. The initial plan was for me to take the kids off the ship so they could go back to Scuttle’s Cove and I wanted to see Serenity Bay (the adult beach). DH and Ollie were going to stay on board. Well, it rained all day so we didn’t get off the ship. There were lots of onboard activities added so there was plenty to do. The kids went back to the kids club and I spent a good part of the afternoon repacking our stuff to get it ready for disembarking. So, I got my “at sea” day after all. Our last night onboard was pretty rocky. We felt like we were swaying for about a week after we got off the ship. I’m not sure if that was just due to us needing to get our equilibrium back or if it was because of the rockiness. I don’t remember feeling like that after our last cruise 12 years ago.

 

As for our meals, I can’t really remember what we ate. It was all really good though. The desserts were excellent. We all really enjoyed the chilled strawberry mint soup and I had some of the best fresh pineapple I have ever had. We ate at Palo’s our second night on board so we missed our pirate night dinner. In a way, I wish we had eaten at our regular dinner seating that night. (We were initially wait-listed for Palo’s and took the reservation we could get). My daughter and I did go to the Pirates in the Caribbean party on the deck that was a lot of fun. I watched part of the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie on the deck after I got the kids in bed. I hadn’t seen any of the movies before. I really liked what I did see. I was getting sleepy and left about half way though it.

 

The folks from the cruise line were very helpful with the dog. We had his import papers handled without a problem. The servers offered to bring Ollie water. No complaints about the on board service we received. I really liked how it was stressed that if there was anything that was needed to make the trip more enjoyable, all we needed to do was ask.

 

Once were docked back at the terminal, I realized from our room that we could see the NASA building and the launch pad at the space center. That was pretty neat.

 

Disembarking was smooth and uneventful. We reloaded the vehicles and went back to Disney World for another 3 fun filled days!

 

I have a more detailed trip report about our days at the parks posted on another message board. I’m not sure if I can post the link here or not. If I can, or if anyone would like to read that report, send me an email or private message so I can send the link.

 

Again, thanks for all the assistance I received regarding the necessary paperwork while planning the trip.

[JNCRUISEBUMS]

WOW! What a great trip! And what a gorgeous OLLIE! How did Ollie like the cruise? Nancie:cool:

[wizard-of-roz]

CJ: I'm so glad that all went well for Ollie and the rest of you.......I love, love cruising with a Service Dog!

So, when's your next cruise? :D

[Quampapetet]

Sounds like you had a great time! Sounds like the ship was very helpful about Ollie stuff, too, which is good. How did Ollie take to the potty "pool"?

 

What was the company of the glass-bottom boat tour you went on? It sounds like fun and might be something to take my friends on when they spend part of my Bahamas vacation with me next year. What kinds of things did you see on the tour? Did Ollie like it?

 

Oh - and those are great photos! I have the same boots in the same color for my SD and she's not fond of them, either. We didn't take any character photos at Disney last time, though. Mostly because we didn't see any characters I wanted to take photos with! I need to make reservations for one/some of those character dinners next time.

[cjborne2]

Ollie is a very "go with the flow" type of dog. He's a great worker and not much seems to bother him. He adjusted well to the boat and his relief accomodations. Once he went the first time we knew he'd be OK.

 

As for the glass bottom boat tour, I don't remember the name of the company it was with, but it was arranged through the cruise line. I had them check to make sure the dog wouldn't be a problem since I knew access to some places might have been limited or restricted. We went between Nassau and Pleasure Island and the tour guide pointed out places along the way. We had to go downstairs to the glass viewing areas. Ollie and my husband actually chose to stay up top. (Ollie is a Seeing Eye dog and DH said the view for him was the same whether he was upstairs or downstairs.) The stairs were VERY steep. On the way back, the guide asked a bunch of trivia questions based on info he told us. Prizes were keychains and whistles. My kids got a bunch of things.

 

Most of the characters Ollie saw was during the dinners and most of the time we didn't get him up from under the table. One dinner the characters knew he was there because the table was small and his nose was poking out a bit between the chairs. I was letting them know he was there so Ollie wouldn't get his nose stepped on. He was exhausted at that point though and didn't move even when Dale and Minne stooped down to say hello. (Dale did ask me first if it was OK to pet him.) I had other pictures with the kids and characters but Ollie was not with us at those times. I would have liked princess photos but we never did get to them. The only picture with Mickey is Sorcerer Mickey. That one came out cute too.

 

As for when our next cruise will be...It depends on whether we get treated again or we pay our own way :) . I would seriously look into an Alaskan cruise down the road or the 7 day Disney cruise.

 

Do all cruise lines offer the kids clubs? A friend recently went on a Royal Caribbean cruise and they did have a club, but that was also the Nickolodian (sp?) themed cruise.

[wizard-of-roz]

CJ: All the cruiselines have something or another for the kids to do.....they really try to entertain the children onboard. Not as much as you might get with a Disney or Carnival experience but still something.

My children loved Carnival and voted HAL and NCL as the most boring!

[DisneyKidsDad]

My daughter will be getting her service dog in September. We already have a 7 day Disney cruise booked for next July. I would love to see a pic of the "kiddie pool" on the veranda.

[wizard-of-roz]

Disney: Congratulations! Life will never be the same! It will be richer; fuller; better in so many ways and for everyone!

"Brenda" (pure Black Lab) knows who she's working for but she's such a "people pleaser" she gives her love to anyone who will accept her or who will hold out their hand to pat her!

May I ask, which organization you're getting your dog from?

We have never been given a "childs wading pool, as a potty box", I, too, am curious as to how it looks all set-up! And, what does Disney use as the filler?

[DisneyKidsDad]

We are going through Cannine Companions for Independance. We have a quick 4 day trip to WDW planned in October. Even though we have been to Disney World 12 times, this will be our first trip with a dog. We feel like newbies.

[wizard-of-roz]

Disney: You lucky, lucky people....Canine Companions for Independence is one of the most respected and amazing dog/people training organizations that I have ever dealt with!!!

You will have their support and one of the most phenomenally trained dogs for the rest of your child's life.......because they have a successor program, when your dog retires, that will move you from trained dog to trained dog. Again, congratulations!!!!

[cjborne2]

[cjborne2]

The pool was filled with "turf". It reminded me of pieces of sod. I had read that everything would be taken care of as far as clean up goes. We, however, picked everything up as we would normally. It was getting a little dry after a few days, but after it rained the grass perked up a bit again.

 

Get the Disability Guide books from WDW ahead of time so you can have an idea of where the "relief areas" are.

[cjborne2]

I also wrote a fairly detailed trip report written from the dog's perspective. Is it appropriate to post that link here? I don't know the rules of these boards. If there is a way to send me a private message or email me directly (I don't think that option is available if I read the profile correctly) you can do that too and I can get the link to you.

[wizard-of-roz]

How clever is that...to fill a kids wading pool with sod....great idea. And, it's really no big deal for the cruiseline to supply this.

If you had an inside cabin the wading pool would be placed on an outside deck; in a crew working closet, near your cabin; in a stairwell area-these would be down the hall from your cabin. The ships try to be as accommodating as possible!

Thanks for the picture to really clarify things.

[wizard-of-roz]

CJ: There is a place to put the dog's perspective on these boards.....go to the thread for Handicapped or Disabled Cruising and post it in the thread about "Cruising with a Service Dog".

We are all interested in reading about your cruising with your SD and how he felt about it!

You could post it here, as well. As long as it relates to cruising and your dog doesn't use bad language it should be fine.

[DisneyKidsDad]

The pool was filled with "turf". It reminded me of pieces of sod. I had read that everything would be taken care of as far as clean up goes. We, however, picked everything up as we would normally. It was getting a little dry after a few days, but after it rained the grass perked up a bit again.

 

Get the Disability Guide books from WDW ahead of time so you can have an idea of where the "relief areas" are.

 

How cool is that!! What a great idea. I guess I'll have to get a kiddie pool and train the SD before the cruise. I have Disney sending me the guide book for the parks. I have time to do anything for the cruise. It's not till July, 2009.

[wizard-of-roz]

Once we trained Brenny to go into a 4x4 box, that my DH built, and we filled it with mulch......she was all set. We would practice, practice, practice. Cruising was no big deal, she was already used to going into a "box"....so, going into a wading pool should be just as easy.

I'm just concerned about the heigth of the pool. How high is the step into the pool? Certainly circling a circular (boy try saying that a few times):eek: area would be more doggie friendly than the 4x4 or 4x5 box provided by most cruise ships.

[DisneyKidsDad]

I'm thinking a Lab or Golden won't have a problem getting into that pool.

[Quampapetet]

That potty pool is a great idea! I wish we'd had that on our balcony on the line we went on.

 

Like Roz said, the circular shape is dog-friendly. I imagine the plastic surface is much easier to clean than a wood box, too.

 

Thanks for posting the photo!