Disney banned my service dog after allowing it

Hello, I am new to these boards but not new to cruising. Forgive me if I’m posting this in the wrong area, but I need to make others aware of what happened to me so it doesn’t happen to anyone else.

I am disabled, my disability is neurological and goes in and out of remission. I relied on a wheelchair for many years until finally obtaining a service dog to assist me. I have read many years worth of reviews on cruise critic (thank you all), as well as talked to many passengers aboard the 30 cruises I have taken who have service dogs. I felt confident that obtaining a service dog would give more freedom to myself and my husband to enjoy life in spite of my condition.

I booked my first cruise to be taken with the service dog. It was aboard the Disney Wonder for February 2018. The representatives were amazing at adding my service dog to my sea pass and calming my nerves that everything is alright and gave me the go ahead to board with the service dog. I then asked a question out of curiosity, and that was “can we get off at all the ports or do I have to remain on the ship with the dog because I don’t have the permit for the Bahamas”. I was given the number for special needs Disney and encountered a huge problem that almost cost me the life of my service dog! I was told my service dog can not board without all the permits for all the islands, Customs will confinscate, quarantine and possibly destroy the service dog once they find out there is a service dog on board a ship in their waters, it didn’t matter if we were remaining onboard and not stepping foot in Castaway Cay, Disney’s private island. I was told because we are in their waters they need a permit to remain onboard and customs will board the ship and confiscate the service dog. I was also informed that I will never be able to cruise to Barbados because they don’t recognize service dogs and will confinscate any aboard the ship in their ports.

I was mortified that I came so close to having my service animal destroyed after being assured we were all clear to sail. I wrote a letter to Disney Corporate and was contacted by them, they told me, “we give money to people who complain, but this complaint is not worth any consideration or compensation”, I advised this corporate manager that I have not asked for a penny in money, I’m asking that they revise their flawed policy and contract because no where in the contract or policy does it state I will be banned from bringing my service dog with me. I was sold the ticket with the knowledge I had a service dog, I was given the all clear and 100% all paperwork filled out for the service dog to board the ship, I was told the service dog is now attached to my sea pass, and was then told to have a wonderful vacation with my husband and service dog, only to find out the next day that if I bring her she can be confiscated and destroyed.

Disney executive resolution to solve this emergency situation that holds the lives of service animals and their handlers in jeopardy, is to email me a copy of the flawed contract. Not change the contract, not advise customers prior to purchasing tickets of the flawed law that could get your service dog killed, but to have everything remain the same and give me a copy of the same policy that almost got my service dog killed. The policy I read online I was told is from their cruise contract and the executive told me I could not find it online, I asked him to google it word for word and he did find it online. The policy states I need to provide 72 hours advance notification I was bringing a service dog, and it then states Disney will not be held responsible for anyone that is refused to get off in ports of countries that require a permit for service animals if you do not obtain the permits. I do not hold Disney responsible for me not getting off the ship in a port I did not have the permit for, I do hold them responsible for banning my service animal from getting onboard and not informing me of the unwritten rules that almost got my service dog killed.

I want to take the time to warn people with service animals of this unwritten law that Disney abides by. I still do not understand why if it’s the law of the land why do other cruise lines allow the service animal and handler to remain onboard when they don’t have the permits?

I want to advise people of this emergency situation to prevent the pain and suffering I had to endure. I was told I would lose my $2000.00 if I canceled because of their flawed policy and unwritten and unspoken law, or I could leave the service dog home and not be made aware of a neurological episode from my dog alerting me, and be tortured for 18 days without her not being able to assist me before, during and after a neurological episode.

The people I spoke to at Disney made me feel like they think service dogs are a joke, the one person I spoke to in special needs was condescending and asked me, “can’t you do without your service dog for four days?”, I wonder if this person asks an amputee to do without their prosthetic leg for four days, or if they ask the visually impaired person to go without their service dog for four days. I have never been asked to go without my wheelchair, pain pills, muscle pills, cane, walker or any other medical assist device, but when it comes to my service dog Disney feels it’s okay to go without my need for her medical assistance she provides. Special needs did advise me to “just bring a manual wheelchair” as a resolution. I have disability in one arm, try to picture a one armed person operating a manual wheelchair! I would be doing the same thing talking to them was doing, and that would be going around in circles all day getting nowhere!!!

I would love to hear others who have taken Disney cruises with service dogs and did not have permits for them. Has anyone traveled with a service dog on Disney Cruise Line? Or do they make it impossible for anyone with a service dog to book with them? I saw two dogs on my Royal Caribbean cruise just recently, I spoke to the one owner and he stated he had no permits and no problems with customs. This makes me feel like the problem is with Disney, after all, they are enforcing a policy that is not in writing and not made verbal.

Any thoughts or experiences would be greatly appreciated.

And if you are disabled and have a service dog please be warned after you book and have all paperwork filled out and have the dog on your sea pass, your dog will be banned from entry and if you do bring it onboard customs will remove it from the ship in ports you have no permit for, as per Disney special needs “it doesn’t matter if you remain onboard or not, if you are in Bahamas’ water you are considered importing it and must have a permit to import dogs, even service dogs”.

It actually is your responsibility, as the passenger, to ensure that both you and your service dog have all of the proper documents for every country you will visit during your cruise. The situation is unfortunate, but you are the one who has to research this.

It says here: You are responsible for obtaining the import permits from all countries that require those special documents and must have those original documents available at all times.

https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/guests-with-disabilities/service-animals/

Information regarding the Bahamas:

http://www.pettravel.com/immigration/bahamas.cfm

I know the Disney company very well, and I find it highly unlikely this scenario played out as described.

Disney actually uncovered a problem with documentation that saved your dog's life. Perhaps they should have recognized the problem sooner, given that your service animal should have been a dis-qualifier for selling you a cruise that stopped in the Bahamas and/or Barbados. It's not clear which country was the problem.

This issue of "do I need proper documents for (insert country here) if I do not get off the ship?" has been raised many times, usually in regards to a visa. The answer is invariably, yes. Absolutely. When in port you are in the legal jurisdiction of the country and subject to all its regulations and laws. Getting off the ship or not is irrelevant.

If the point of your post is to caution others with service animals to be aware of the pitfalls of entering jurisdictional control of other nations without crossing the T's and dotting the I's of local documentation requirements, I applaud your goal. Perhaps you could join others to do research on which countries are receptive of service animals and which are not. That would actually be a very positive step to mitigate the emotional distress of your close call.

I was remaining onboard with the dog in port. I have all documents for her to travel. The cruise rep stated we were all set to board. The ticket was sold knowing it was too late to get a permit to exit the ship in Bahama port. Other guests with service dogs on different ships are allowed to remain onboard with the service dog. Disney doesn’t state the dog will be banned from embarking the ship, they already gave me the authorization to embark with the dog and the paperwork I had. If I followed the representative’s authorization that everything was in order to bring her, I would have had my service dog possibly destroyed. How is it my responsibility to get all the paperwork that I was told I already had in my hand? I was not made aware of her being banned from entering the ship until full payments were made. If it is “the law of the land” why do other cruise ships abide by different laws? Why does Carnival, Royal, Norwegian, and Celebrity (all ships oven crusiesd with and spoken to handlers) have service dogs allowed to remain onboard at ports with their handlers if they don’t have the permits to enter the island? Why is Disney claiming something different than all these other ships? Is it because they have a lot of children onboard? If it was the law then why isn’t it in writing? Why want it told to me? If I am a sales rep with an airline and a person calls to book a flight and tells me they have those cell phones they catch on fire, I would inform him that he can not board with those devices and if he does they will be confinscate and destroyed. We are not taking about a materialistic item that can be easily replaced, we are taking about a living breathing service dog who could have been destroyed because this law is not made public, not in their contract, not informed of during sales.

I know the Disney company very well, and I find it highly unlikely this scenario played out as described.

Can I post the names of these people who banned her and the person claiming to be the executive in charge of complaints? If you know Disney very well, then please, ask for the recorded tapes. If I’m allowed to post names I will gladly give names. I would not write something that was not true. I have recorded phone calls to back up everything.

Wondering which department you spoke to with regard to what you needed for your dog in the first place?

It says here: You are responsible for obtaining the import permits from all countries that require those special documents and must have those original documents available at all times.

 

https://disneycruise.disney.go.com/faq/guests-with-disabilities/service-animals/

 

Information regarding the Bahamas:

 

http://www.pettravel.com/immigration/bahamas.cfm

Correct, if I was exiting the ship in that port. Disney Cruise contract says they are not responsible if you can’t visit a port because you don’t have the permit. No where does it state I will be banned from entering the ship and if I did get on customs would confinscate her.

Correct, if I was exiting the ship in that port. Disney Cruise contract says they are not responsible if you can’t visit a port because you don’t have the permit. No where does it state I will be banned from entering the ship and if I did get on customs would confinscate her.

Was it Disney Cruises Special Services who gave you all the information in the first place or was it the cruise consultant who booked the cruise?

Disney actually uncovered a problem with documentation that saved your dog's life. Perhaps they should have recognized the problem sooner, given that your service animal should have been a dis-qualifier for selling you a cruise that stopped in the Bahamas and/or Barbados. It's not clear which country was the problem.

 

This issue of "do I need proper documents for (insert country here) if I do not get off the ship?" has been raised many times, usually in regards to a visa. The answer is invariably, yes. Absolutely. When in port you are in the legal jurisdiction of the country and subject to all its regulations and laws. Getting off the ship or not is irrelevant.

 

If the point of your post is to caution others with service animals to be aware of the pitfalls of entering jurisdictional control of other nations without crossing the T's and dotting the I's of local documentation requirements, I applaud your goal. Perhaps you could join others to do research on which countries are receptive of service animals and which are not. That would actually be a very positive step to mitigate the emotional distress of your close call.

Yes, to warn others, I’m still traumatized at how close she came to being possibly destroyed!!! I did inform the executive who called me regarding this issue that his special needs person, although rude and condescending, did do me a great favor by relaying this unwritten law to me. When I spoke to the executive yesterday I advised of the extreme urgency to prevent other people from this situation. My issue now is he told me his way of resolving it is to forward my complaint and to email me a copy of the same flawed contract. I was in tears after hanging up with him because right now there maybe another person calling and getting the go ahead to bring the service animal and be completely unaware of the fate it may meet with customs on an island they have no permit for, I also relayed this message to the executive.

Disney cruise line does not make immigration law. You were aware you didn't have the correct documentation when you brought it up to the cruise line. It's pretty disingenuous to complain now.

Many countries require you to have the necessary travel documents, even if you don't get off the ship. It's always the traveler's responsibility to find out what these are and to obtain them. Many cruise line agents have no idea what immigration policies are for different countries, and they shouldn't have to.

It is clear you needed to have the nescessary documentation (link given in another post) to bring your dog to the Bahamas. Doesn't matter if you get off the ship or not.

I think your post is just way over-the-top.

Your dog is fine. Lesson learned, now move forward.

Disney actually uncovered a problem with documentation that saved your dog's life. Perhaps they should have recognized the problem sooner, given that your service animal should have been a dis-qualifier for selling you a cruise that stopped in the Bahamas and/or Barbados. It's not clear which country was the problem.

 

This issue of "do I need proper documents for (insert country here) if I do not get off the ship?" has been raised many times, usually in regards to a visa. The answer is invariably, yes. Absolutely. When in port you are in the legal jurisdiction of the country and subject to all its regulations and laws. Getting off the ship or not is irrelevant.

 

If the point of your post is to caution others with service animals to be aware of the pitfalls of entering jurisdictional control of other nations without crossing the T's and dotting the I's of local documentation requirements, I applaud your goal. Perhaps you could join others to do research on which countries are receptive of service animals and which are not. That would actually be a very positive step to mitigate the emotional distress of your close call.

I just tri d to edit to include it was the Bahamas as the issue and I think I just lost my whole post so I will write it again.

Yes, my goal is to inform others of this situation. I did mention to the executive in charge of complaints, that arbough his special needs was rude and condescending asking me to go without my service dog for four days, he did indeed save her life if this is the law. I also advised him to make it clear and get everyone on the same page that this is the law and if you board without permits regardless if you remain onboard or not then your service animal may be confiscated and destroyed. I was in tears after the phone call because right now there could be another person booking a cruise and getting the al clear to board and then having their service dog meet a horrific fate because the Disney reps are not all aware of this unwritten law.

I informed the executive to immediately change the policy to make it clear of what I was told to prevent others from being harmed or much worse losing part of their medical assist devices. I was told he would pass it on to others departments and he would send me a copy of the flawed policy. He said I would get no follow up and would have to check their website on a daily basis to see if anything changed.

It's too bad you had to come to a forum to 'warn others'. But this forum has a separate board for disabilities, and a VERY LONG thread about cruising with a service dog. Coming here and reading there before your cruise would have prevented your problems. Everything you needed to know is there. EM

Many countries require you to have the necessary travel documents, even if you don't get off the ship. It's always the traveler's responsibility to find out what these are and to obtain them. Many cruise line agents have no idea what immigration policies are for different countries, and they shouldn't have to.

It is clear you needed to have the nescessary documentation (link given in another post) to bring your dog to the Bahamas. Doesn't matter if you get off the ship or not.

I think your post is just way over-the-top.

Your dog is fine. Lesson learned, now move forward.

I don’t agree that a Disney Cruise Line representative doesn’t need to be made aware of the possibility of selling a ticket to someone that may result in death of a living creature. Why is it that they ask if anyone in your party will be over so many weeks pregnant before they sell you the ticket? Because they want to prevent selling a ticket to someone who can not travel without documentation from a doctor regarding the pregnancy. But when it comes to travel with a service dog they can very easily be trained to transfer the call directly to special needs to ensure they are safe to travel and have all documents required.

I’m sorry you find my post over the top, you are entitled to that, but if this saves one person from having a service dog destroyed or having to make a decision to do without part of their medical devices or lose thousands of dollars then over the top I shall be to save lives.

Yes, my dog is fine, but I want to ensure other people in my situation have their service dog be fine too and not encounter what I went through. This is my way of moving forward. To alert others of the danger.

Can I post the names of these people who banned her and the person claiming to be the executive in charge of complaints?...

Please don't - that's not what these message boards are here for.

Wondering which department you spoke to with regard to what you needed for your dog in the first place?

I booked through outside agency and was told there was a ton of paperwork to fill out. I then called Disney Cruise Line direct with their 800 number found by googling Disney Cruise Line, there I spoke to two women who were wonderful and the one woman took the time to fill out all the paperwork and inform me we were good to go. I was told by the executive in charge of complaints that this woman was wrong. This is my main situation, everyone needs to be on the same page regarding giving anyone the 100% go ahead for travel, whether it be with a service dog and documentation needed, or if it’s with medical documentation needed for pregnancy. Everyone needs to be on the same page and they are not and it almost cost me a very valuable medical assist device.

You can't fix the world.

I beieve, but not certain, that when the ship is in port, you are in that country and would have to abide by their rules.

 

Was it Disney Cruises Special Services who gave you all the information in the first place or was it the cruise consultant who booked the cruise?

I spoke to two members from Disney special needs department. It was the second person I spoke with that told me what you are saying and that is it doesn’t matter if I remain on the ship with the dog, we are still considered importing to that country by being in their waters. Don’t get me wrong, if that’s the law then I praise him for saving the life of my dog!!! But my issue is how come it’s not the same for other cruise lines? Right now someone who took their service dog on ten cruises with Royal or another company, had no issues not having the permit, then they book with Disney and get the all clear to bring the dog and then find out it’s not true. That frightens me!!! The law should be the same for all ships, just like for airlines, I wouldn’t think different airlines would have different laws.

Cruises go to many different places, and different countries have different requirements about entry of animals.

All cruise lines must follow the same laws for each country.

The policy states I need to provide 72 hours advance notification I was bringing a service dog, and it then states Disney will not be held responsible for anyone that is refused to get off in ports of countries that require a permit for service animals if you do not obtain the permits. I do not hold Disney responsible for me not getting off the ship in a port I did not have the permit for, I do hold them responsible for banning my service animal from getting onboard and not informing me of the unwritten rules that almost got my service dog killed.

You are the one who chose to interpret the Disney policy as "well, I can choose to not get off at any port and that absolves me of the responsibility of researching whether I still actually need permits." It is not Disney's obligation in the slightest to word their instructions in such a way that anticipates such inaction on the passenger's part.

And I will add that while the lack of empathy on the part of those you followed up with is regrettable, as a service animal dependent person you should be hardened to public ignorance and always be prepared to fight it with real knowledge. Which you failed to obtain on your own in this case, relying on your interpretation of their disclaimer of responsibility as the final authority.

It's too bad you had to come to a forum to 'warn others'. But this forum has a separate board for disabilities, and a VERY LONG thread about cruising with a service dog. Coming here and reading there before your cruise would have prevented your problems. Everything you needed to know is there. EM

As I stated when I wrote this post, forgive me if I’m posting in the wrong spot. I did read the long post prior to booking, I have been reading posts on here prior to getting the service animal. I have been taking to people on board the various ships regarding permits and they all tell me the same thing that they don’t have the permit so one person must remain onboard. I spoke to a man just last month on Royal who stated to me he has no permits for the dog except the health certificate and he has no problems with customs. He stated to me that his wife gets off in port and he remains onboard with the dog, when his wife comes back from port he goes off the ship and leaves his wife with the dog. This game as a shock to me because a service dog should always be with the handler, there would be no way I could go off the ship alone, my disability prevents me from going places alone.

This thread was move from the "Ask a Cruise Question" board where it was first posted. I know some of you are very conversant in the minutiae of the paperwork and associated requirements of traveling with a service dog and could help our new member.

Thanks,

Host Walt

You are the one who chose to interpret the Disney policy as "well, I can choose to not get off at any port and that absolves me of the responsibility of researching whether I still actually need permits." It is not Disney's obligation in the slightest to word their instructions in such a way that anticipates such inaction on the passenger's part.

 

And I will add that while the lack of empathy on the part of those you followed up with is regrettable, as a service animal dependent person you should be hardened to public ignorance and always be prepared to fight it with real knowledge. Which you failed to obtain on your own in this case, relying on your interpretation of their disclaimer of responsibility as the final authority.

I interpreted what was written in the way it was written. That clause covers getting off in ports. It did not pertain to me because I was not getting off in port. When I looked for the clause that states what happened to me, there is no clause, no written rules, no small print. I can not misinterpret something that is not written! This is what I was trying my hardest to relay to the executive in charge of complaints. The policy needs to be updated to include that “the dog and handler may remain onboard at all ports, but must have the permits from that country to remain onboard. It does not matter if you remain onboard the ship at the port or if you exit the ship at the ports, permits for those ports are required. Failure to obtain the permits for each and every port will result in the service animal being banned from embarking the ship on day one”.

If this was included in their policy, I would never have booked that cruise because I did not have the permit for the Bahamas.

I should never have been given the all clear to board with the dog from their representative. I should have never been told that all the paperwork is filled out for the service dog to board the ship. How can I be expected to get additional paperwork when I am told by their trained staff that all the paperwork is completed? It’s not about me misinterpreting anything, the rep spoke very clearly, she filled out all the paperwork and there was nothing left for me to do except enjoy my cruise.

I think people are having an issue because it’s a service dog, let’s for arguments sake, change it to 40 week pregnant cruiser, she informs four reps she is 40 weeks pregnant, all four reps allow her to book and pay for the cruise, she is told there is a ton of paperwork to fill out, the rep states all paperwork is filled out, she gets the all clear to board by the rep, she calls a fifth rep because she has a question and the 5th rep she talks to tells her she can’t cruise at 40 weeks pregnant there is no way she will be allowed on board and she will lose all money she paid. Does everyone agree that it is the pregnant woman’s fault for taking the word of four representatives? Or does the blame fall to the four people she spoke to and informed she was 40 weeks pregnant? Because that’s what I’m reading here, I shouldn’t trust the experts telling me everything is in order and we are clear for sailing, I should keep calling and googling to find out if I am being misled.

I’m only using the pregnancy scenario to show how absurd it is to tell me that it’s my fault for believing the trained representatives.

I did read the long post prior to booking [Cruising with a Service Dog...]

Then I am surprised, because just in the last few pages of this thread, a poster clearly states that even if you aren't getting off the ship, to enter Bahamian waters, you need an import permit for your dog.