Dog on ship

 

But as far as service animals on a cruise goes. On a vision we saw a woman with a dog and on Harmony there were two or three but it was never invasive or obnoxious.

 

 

Agree. I've never thought it to be a problem on any of the cruises I've been on.

 

 

 

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I posted not because I consider this a problem but just because it seemed so unusual. Much prefer the adorable little Yorkie, carried around by its owner, making no noise or other trouble to the many, many unruly and obnoxious children on this particular cruise

I posted not because I consider this a problem but just because it seemed so unusual. Much prefer the adorable little Yorkie, carried around by its owner, making no noise or other trouble to the many, many unruly and obnoxious children on this particular cruise

Welcome to Cruise Critic, See what your first post did?;p

Welcome to Cruise Critic, See what your first post did?;p

 

Pretty impressive, actually!

Wow, what's next Handicap Parking!

Wow, what's next Handicap Parking!

Could be.....

 

She looks cute though.

 

Thanks! She is a Momma's baby for sure. I find that is the only bad thing about cruising...I miss her so much and she

misses me....but I would never consider taking her on a ship as a therapy cat. ;)

I have heard this several times and I must admit I find it almost impossible to believe.

 

Aren't most, if not all, true service animals trained and provided by organizations and normally at no cost to the individual? I know that was true of the 5 people I have known over the course of my life that had service animals. When the animal is trained, it would cost maybe a couple of dollars to print a certification page and have it signed by both the trainer and someone from the organization. Then that document is handed to the recipient when they receive the animal.

 

What am I missing? Not trying to be a smarta##...it's an honest question.

 

It's not the certification of the animal. It's the owner getting certification from a doctor that they are truly disabled. Which has to be regularly renewed.

OK...that's it. I am taking my service alligator on board. He will be sure there is no chair hogging, no

over crowding of the elevator, and no push/shoving around me at the buffet in the WJ.

 

The law actually limits service animals to dogs and (really) miniature horses. Although there's a push to add monkeys because they really can be very useful.

 

Sky's the limit for support animals of course.

Well this is interesting.

 

Q37. Do commercial airlines have to comply with the ADA?

A. No. The Air Carrier Access Act is the Federal law that protects the rights of people with disabilities in air travel. For information or to file a complaint, contact the U.S. Department of Transportation, Aviation Consumer Protection Division, at 202-366-2220.

It's not the certification of the animal. It's the owner getting certification from a doctor that they are truly disabled. Which has to be regularly renewed.

You need NONE of the above. If you say it is a service dog..........end of story. The ADA should close a few loopholes.

My inlaws bought a "service dog" vest on amazon. Their dog is their pet and they abuse the system. It really makes me sick and it's hard to be nice about it. I really hope someone gets a handle on this soon because the truly disabled are the ones that will suffer the most.

 

https://www.amazon.com/barkOutfitters-Service-Vest-Harness-Cards/dp/B00T9S8DO4/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1498593138&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=service+dog+vest&psc=1

Royal could cut down on this a bit by simply charging a fee - the posers are more likely to give up then.

 

 

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Never going to happen. They would not want that story in the news, as the other cruise lines would kill them in the media for doing it.

 

As far as what a service dog is or is not, my wife works in special ed and therapy dogs are now very common in treating children with Autism.

 

If the dog is well behaved and does not cause issues, it's not worth challenging people. If the dog is causing disruptions or making a mess then it has to be dealt with regardless of its service credentials.

Never going to happen. They would not want that story in the news, as the other cruise lines would kill them in the media for doing it.

 

As far as what a service dog is or is not, my wife works in special ed and therapy dogs are now very common in treating children with Autism.

 

If the dog is well behaved and does not cause issues, it's not worth challenging people. If the dog is causing disruptions or making a mess then it has to be dealt with regardless of its service credentials.

Agree, but it's not being dealt with. That's the body of this whole thread.

Agree, but it's not being dealt with. That's the body of this whole thread.

 

It's not going to be dealt with. The government is very unlikely to get involved, there is no lobby money in regulating service animals. I would guess in some cases insurance companies directly make money off them. Companies are not going to be the one shows up under the headline "Cruise line tells War Veteran, "You and your service dog isn't welcomed here", when they person forgets the registration papers and they deny boarding. So why would this change??

 

Trying to enforce it run the risk of very negative press, as opposed to maybe letting Granny bring her schnauzer because she says its a service animal.

Well this is interesting.

It is anyone's guess how much the airline lobby paid for that, very explicitly expressed, exclusion.

 

 

This message may have been entered using voice recognition. Please excuse any typos.

My inlaws bought a "service dog" vest on amazon. Their dog is their pet and they abuse the system. It really makes me sick and it's hard to be nice about it. I really hope someone gets a handle on this soon because the truly disabled are the ones that will suffer the most.

 

https://www.amazon.com/barkOutfitters-Service-Vest-Harness-Cards/dp/B00T9S8DO4/ref=sr_1_1?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1498593138&sr=1-1-spons&keywords=service+dog+vest&psc=1

 

THANK YOU, THANK YOU!:hearteyes:

 

I've been looking for one of those for my MIL's mini dachshund, Queenie. She loves to go everwhere with that little b*st*rd. :) Now MIL can cruise solo!

 

Hey, it's better than having her travel with us.;p

 

P.S. Did you spot the sarcasm? It was only a little lap-dog sized amount, but it was there.;)

A lot of the problem is the failure of Cruise lines/ Airlines/ hotels and other establishments training their personnel to follow simple guidelines.(in the US of course- embarkation ports in US)

 

The US Department of Justice has a page CLEARLY explaining what is/ is not considered a service animal, and how to determine if the dog qualifies, and how staff can weed the non-compliance animals out. Very easy, but tricky and takes a small amount of training.

 

I worked for a transportation company for many years, and we had strict guidelines to make a determination as to whether the dog was able to travel. I turned down many animals, even with the "treats" of being sued by the ADA, an was never investigated, reprimanded or overturned.

 

A service animal is "TRAINED" to provide a specific service. You may ask what service your animal was trained to provide. Notice I did not ask what your disability was? (I'm not allowed to ask that). The latest scam is people saying their dog is a seizure dog. That is not what I asked. I asked what service is your dog trained to provide? The dog alerts me by nudging my leg I am going to have a seizure so I can takes medication. Have a nice trip. Individuals that are just traveling with the animals, not true service animals at this point start fussing about me violating their rights. I would simply deny them service, hand them a copy of the 1 page Department of justice ruling, and refund their ticket. It's not rocket science, but no one wants to step on anyone's toes.

 

The other question we were allowed to ask was " Is that your pet?" Of course no one says yes. They always say it's my service animal, so I start using the other question. With exception of a visually impaired guide dog, I never looked at vests. I never looked at documentation. Not needed. True service animal owners know the correct answers, and how to answer properly. An individual with PTSD will not answer with : It's my service dog". They will always answer, the dog does "whatever" when there are large noises.

 

Just go to ADA.gov and in the search box up top, type in service animals, and it will take you to the updated link.

Have ANY of you ever heard about "emotional support" animals? They are not quite the same as dogs who guide hearing/sight-impaired folks. You have to have documentation from some recognized entity and the cruise line demands that. Why do you think those several animal relief boxes have been placed near the running tracks?

Have ANY of you ever heard about "emotional support" animals? They are not quite the same as dogs who guide hearing/sight-impaired folks. You have to have documentation from some recognized entity and the cruise line demands that. Why do you think those several animal relief boxes have been placed near the running tracks?

 

This entire thread has been discussing them. Emotional support animals are NOT covered by the ADA and airlines/ships/businesses are free to forbid them. There is no such thing as a recognized entity.

THANK YOU, THANK YOU!:hearteyes:

 

I've been looking for one of those for my MIL's mini dachshund, Queenie. She loves to go everwhere with that little b*st*rd. :) Now MIL can cruise solo!

 

Hey, it's better than having her travel with us.;p

 

P.S. Did you spot the sarcasm? It was only a little lap-dog sized amount, but it was there.;)

 

LOL love it. Thanks for the laugh this morning :)

Why do you think those several animal relief boxes have been placed near the running tracks?

To start threads like this.

Have ANY of you ever heard about "emotional support" animals? They are not quite the same as dogs who guide hearing/sight-impaired folks. You have to have documentation from some recognized entity and the cruise line demands that. Why do you think those several animal relief boxes have been placed near the running tracks?

 

I feel like you didn't read any of the posts on this thread before posting this reply!

A lot of the problem is the failure of Cruise lines/ Airlines/ hotels and other establishments training their personnel to follow simple guidelines.(in the US of course- embarkation ports in US)

 

The US Department of Justice has a page CLEARLY explaining what is/ is not considered a service animal, and how to determine if the dog qualifies, and how staff can weed the non-compliance animals out. Very easy, but tricky and takes a small amount of training.

 

I worked for a transportation company for many years, and we had strict guidelines to make a determination as to whether the dog was able to travel. I turned down many animals, even with the "treats" of being sued by the ADA, an was never investigated, reprimanded or overturned.

 

Just go to ADA.gov and in the search box up top, type in service animals, and it will take you to the updated link.

 

I can only speak to hotels, as I have no experience in the other areas. Many hotels will accept any pet provided the guest pay the associated pet fee. So the issues are: hotels that don't allow pets have to allow service animals, and the others can not charge a pet fee in association with a service animal provided it meets the ADA guidelines. There isn't really a training issue, because very few hotel companies will bother to question the legitimacy of a service animals certification or need. The ADA guidelines provide for the removal of animals that are disruptive or destructive, and for the recouping of moneys associated with damages. From a cost benefit and liability standpoint it isn't worth the risk to deny someone, when the remedy for any problem already exists.

 

You acknowledge that you were enforcing company guidelines, which followed strict interpretation of ADA rules. Hotels use those as a minimum standard, and have policies that are more liberal than those guidelines. It is not an individual employee making that call. I think it is very different for restaurants, airplanes, trains, etc. because of health codes, and close proximity issues. For a hotel, if the dog is well behaved, it's not worth arguing over.

 

Of course I think this is this is all moot. As far as I can see a cruise line that stops in at least one foreign port is not subject to ADA guidelines. I am very sure that their policies are driven by public opinion, and concern over backlash.

Of course I think this is this is all moot. As far as I can see a cruise line that stops in at least one foreign port is not subject to ADA guidelines.

That's not the case. Rather, the ADA only does not apply when compliance would, "violate the law of the foreign country". The exclusion you're talking about only applies when the foreign country itself explicitly prohibits compliance with ADA. Furthermore, the exclusion you're talking about only applies within the confines of that foreign country. It does not apply at any other portion of the cruise when the ship is in jurisdictions that do not explicitly prohibit compliance with the ADA. To be very clear, commerce, in the context of the law, is defined as "travel, trade, traffic, commerce, transportation, or communications (A) among the several States; (B) between any foreign country or any territory or possession and any State; or © between points in the same State but through another State or foreign country." It is not exclusive to commerce within the States.

 

As long as compliance does not, "violate the law of the foreign country" then the ADA is still applicable to the public accommodation as it is offered to Americans in an American marketplace.