Dog on the Edge!

[TeeRick]

On 2/6/2019 at 8:22 PM, chaswill said:

We just completed our cruise on the Edge, 20 Jan - 27 Jan, and spotted a small dog being carried around by a passenger.  She took it in a small bag to a show in the theater and into the cafe!! We questioned a staff member at Guest Services and he said they have to go through a lot of paperwork to bring a dog on board and are told that some ports will not let animals off the ship. He said that there was a place on deck 5 where the dog can do their ‘business’. IMHO, I think this is setting  dangerous precedent after what has happened with the airlines.

I guess they were taking advantage of the Dogs Sail Free (DSF) new marketing promotion by Celebrity.  The good news is that the dog hated the Infinite Veranda on Edge and will never sail on her again.  Also when the dog disembarked the funny sewerage odor went away from the ship.  

[yorky]

11 minutes ago, wpgcycler said:

For the dog, for sure.

Imagine if it go into the hallowed Michaels Club, panic would surely of ensued as soon as this vicious animal was spotted. Or do they provide dog bowls ?

[wpgcycler]

2 minutes ago, yorky said:

 Or do they provide dog bowls ?

 

Only with Premium Package.

[NLH Arizona]

12 hours ago, 4cats4me said:

There was a dog on our Equinox cruise back in 2014 that pooped in the casino and some lady stepped in it and brought the offending shoe to the lurser’s desk and asked what they were going to do about it, and they offered to clean it. Same dog peed in someone’s cabin during a cabin crawl and pooped at the martini bar. Funny thing is, the dog was supposedly for the wife, yet the husband was the one carrying dog around all week.  Many of us were discussing  this and comparing stories on the CC board after cruise had ended. I don’t think any of us realized how many incidents and problems were created by this dog until after the cruise was over. Oh yeah, dog barked in cabin for several hours several times when  one of them wasn’t around to tend to it, too. 

So sick and tired of faux “service” dogs.  

 

I think i will ask to bring  my Emotional Support Cats onboard the next cruise. 

 

That dog should have been kicked off the ship and doing its business other than were directed and excessive barking are both reasons under the ADA for a business to expell a service dog, which this one was clearly not.  If I were to see something like a dog pooping in public places, I would take a picture and send it to the Health Department of the next US port of call, as well as sending it to cruise line corporate office.  Dogs like this give real service dogs a bad name.

[NLH Arizona]

12 hours ago, johhnnyt said:

In August of 2018 RCCL and all its brands banned ESA's (Emotional Support Animal) of any kind. Anyone who had booked before then are still allowed to bring their pets on so that's probably one of the earlier booked pets . Anyone who requested to bring one after that date was told NO, not allowed. 

       Service animals are still allowed (A service animal is a dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for a person with a disability), just no longer ESA since people were abusing the intent of the policy and taking pets on vacation with them.

        Watching a service dog work is truly amazing if you've never seen it. Like a well oiled best friend/coworker helping when needed, true professionals, and grateful for those that train and work with them.

And now what people will do is lie and say their dog is a service dog.  There needs to be a registration system for service dogs, because these people have no shame and don't want to pay to leave fluffy home while they cruise.  

 

BTW, I've had dogs all my life, my Sadie just passed away this January, but I've always boarded them or left them with a petsitter when I cruised and that was even when I had three Old English Sheepdogs at one time.  

Edited March 15, 2019 by NLH Arizona

[yorky]

5 minutes ago, NLH Arizona said:

That dog should have been kicked off the ship and doing its business other than were directed and excessive barking are both reasons under the ADA for a business to expell a service dog, which this one was clearly not.  If I were to see something like a dog pooping in public places, I would take a picture and send it to the Health Department of the next US port of call, as well as sending it to cruise line corporate office.  Dogs like this give real service dogs a bad name.

woukd you suggest kicking it off port or starboard?

[NLH Arizona]

6 minutes ago, yorky said:

woukd you suggest kicking it off port or starboard?

What I would suggest is certainly different than what the ship should do.

[johhnnyt]

1 hour ago, NLH Arizona said:

And now what people will do is lie and say their dog is a service dog.  There needs to be a registration system for service dogs, because these people have no shame and don't want to pay to leave fluffy home while they cruise.  

 

BTW, I've had dogs all my life, my Sadie just passed away this January, but I've always boarded them or left them with a pet sitter when I cruised and that was even when I had three Old English Sheepdogs at one time.  

The good thing is there is a program in place that prevents people from just calling their animal a service animal.Since you have to notify the cruise line well in advance. They can legally ask

Can you confirm that the dog is required because of a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act?

What physical service tasks has the dog been trained to  perform?

[Loracpin2]

There are Service Dogs and Emotional Support Dogs.  Recently, many airlines have prohibited ESD's.  Hopefully Cruise lines will also adopt the policy. Below is the definition of an emotional support animal. I could be mistaken but I don't think the highlighted area in red meant 'cruise ship cabins.

 

"An emotional support animal is a companion animal (typically a dog or cat) that provides a therapeutic benefit to its owner through companionship. The animal provides emotional support and comfort to individuals with psychiatric disabilities and other mental impairments. The animal is not specifically trained to perform tasks for a person who suffers from emotional disabilities. Unlike a service animal, an emotional support animal is not granted access to places of public accommodation. Under the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA), an emotional support animal is viewed as a “reasonable accommodation” in a housing unit that has a “no pets” rule for its residents. Documentation from a doctor or licensed therapist is required for emotional support animals. If you require an ESA letter, contact one of our sponsors at esadoctors.com. Our paper certificate does not replace an ESA letter and should only be used in conjunction with an ESA letter.

When traveling (in an airplane) we recommend calling ahead of time and notifying them that you will be traveling with an emotional support animal as each airline has their own policy and procedures. Some airlines may require additional documentation from a doctor or licensed therapist as well. Please contact your airline before traveling"

[dkjretired]

1 hour ago, johhnnyt said:

The good thing is there is a program in place that prevents people from just calling their animal a service animal.Since you have to notify the cruise line well in advance. They can legally ask

Can you confirm that the dog is required because of a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act?

What physical service tasks has the dog been trained to  perform?

 

There is no program in place, all those people have to do is say yes and say what the disability is. That’s one of the problems, people lie.

Edited March 15, 2019 by dkjretired

[sippican]

7 minutes ago, Loracpin2 said:

There are Service Dogs and Emotional Support Dogs.  Recently, many airlines have prohibited ESD's.  Hopefully Cruise lines will also adopt the policy. Below is the definition of an emotional support animal. I could be mistaken but I don't think the highlighted area in red meant 'cruise ship cabins.

 

"An emotional support animal is a companion animal (typically a dog or cat) that provides a therapeutic benefit to its owner through companionship. The animal provides emotional support and comfort to individuals with psychiatric disabilities and other mental impairments. The animal is not specifically trained to perform tasks for a person who suffers from emotional disabilities. Unlike a service animal, an emotional support animal is not granted access to places of public accommodation. Under the federal Fair Housing Act (FHA), an emotional support animal is viewed as a “reasonable accommodation” in a housing unit that has a “no pets” rule for its residents. Documentation from a doctor or licensed therapist is required for emotional support animals. If you require an ESA letter, contact one of our sponsors at esadoctors.com. Our paper certificate does not replace an ESA letter and should only be used in conjunction with an ESA letter.

When traveling (in an airplane) we recommend calling ahead of time and notifying them that you will be traveling with an emotional support animal as each airline has their own policy and procedures. Some airlines may require additional documentation from a doctor or licensed therapist as well. Please contact your airline before traveling"

 

Are you really recommending or endorsing that website in the link - "ESA letter", and "esadoctors.com".  It seems like another "mail order" scam for the fakers.

Lets not give them more resources to pull it off!

 

 

Edited March 15, 2019 by sippican

[wpgcycler]

[Loracpin2]

1 hour ago, sippican said:

 

Are you really recommending or endorsing that website in the link - "ESA letter", and "esadoctors.com".  It seems like another "mail order" scam for the fakers.

Lets not give them more resources to pull it off!

 

 

Please re-read my first paragraph below which I have now highlighted in red.  I am not endorsing, I was highlighted the    

 

1 hour ago, sippican said:

There are Service Dogs and Emotional Support Dogs.  Recently, many airlines have prohibited ESD's.  Hopefully Cruise lines will also adopt the policy. Below is the definition of an emotional support animal. I could be mistaken but I don't think the highlighted area in red meant 'cruise ship cabins

 

[Fogfog]

On 2/6/2019 at 10:19 PM, jelayne said:

I’m particularly fond of the white poodle that is pushed around the ship in a pink stroller with a different outfit everyday.

😱

[hrhdhd]

6 hours ago, yorky said:

That must be a truly terrible experience that could ruin the cruise.

 

Yes, 'cause that's what I said. 🙄

[sippican]

32 minutes ago, Loracpin2 said:

Please re-read my first paragraph below which I have now highlighted in red.  I am not endorsing, I was highlighted the    

 

 

 

Perhaps the section after the red (the part to which I was referring), could have been left out, as it links to easy (questionable) ways to acquire the ESA letter.

[NLH Arizona]

4 hours ago, johhnnyt said:

The good thing is there is a program in place that prevents people from just calling their animal a service animal.Since you have to notify the cruise line well in advance. They can legally ask

Can you confirm that the dog is required because of a disability as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act?

What physical service tasks has the dog been trained to  perform?

People have been lying about their dog being a service dog forever.  They say yes they perform a task and it is X, even though it is a lie.  For example, one could say "yes, it is a service dog required for a disability" "the task is they alert me of low blood sugar".  Now, the business can't do anything if it is a fake service dog and this happens all too often.  Service dogs need to have a system to register them, just like disability license plates.

 

 

[MizDemeanor]

17 minutes ago, NLH Arizona said:

People have been lying about their dog being a service dog forever.  They say yes they perform a task and it is X, even though it is a lie.  For example, one could say "yes, it is a service dog required for a disability" "the task is they alert me of low blood sugar".  Now, the business can't do anything if it is a fake service dog and this happens all too often.  Service dogs need to have a system to register them, just like disability license plates.

The thing with low blood sugar is that one can pass out without any assistance. It's such as shame that the distrust has been put into play because of people who work the system for thier own agenda. 

 

Edited March 15, 2019 by MizDemeanor

[NLH Arizona]

2 minutes ago, MizDemeanor said:

The thing with low blood sugar is that one can pass out without any assistance. It's such as shame that the distrust has been put into play because of people who work the system for thier own agenda. 

 

I understand the issues with low blood sugar, I just used it as an example of an ADA accepted disability to show how easily it would be for someone to scam the system.  

[C 2 C]

On 2/7/2019 at 12:06 PM, NLH Arizona said:

When on a cruise ship and you see a dog doing things that are not behavior of a service dog; i.e., doing their business in a public place, excessive barking when not alerting their owner to an issue, sitting on chairs, being fed at tables, growling at people, snapping or being aggressive, etc. take a picture and send one copy to the cruise line corporate office and another, outling the behavior, to the first US port Health Department.

 

 

Recently on Reflection, the large dog had a blanket reading service dog in training, would jump up as any friendly dog would when greeting strangers.  The trail led all the way to the corridor to the elevator.

[reallyhooked]

19 minutes ago, Arno. said:

 

Recently on Reflection, the large dog had a blanket reading service dog in training, would jump up as any friendly dog would when greeting strangers.  The trail led all the way to the corridor to the elevator.

That’s discussing.people like that make it hard for the ones that need their service dogs 

[GoodScout]

"Service Dog in Training" is the latest permutation of the "disguising my pet as a service dog to get what I want and people who need true service dogs be damned" con. 

 

Innkeepers (such as myself), airlines, ships, restaurants, etc. have gotten wise to these con men and women. The ADA requires we accommodate true service animals. But we are allowed to refuse service to ANY animal that misbehaves (FYI, true service animals are meticulously trained and never misbehave, jump on you, bark erratically, etc.). So the con-people have figured out that if they call it a "service animal in training," any bad behavior by the animal can be explained away because they're "in training."

 

What they fail to realize is that the ADA does not require us to accommodate ANY training animal. Only animals that perform a task that the owner cannot perform themselves.

 

It sounds to me like X is going to have to crack down on this before it gets out of hand. 

 

 

[MizDemeanor]

3 hours ago, Arno. said:

 

Recently on Reflection, the large dog had a blanket reading service dog in training, would jump up as any friendly dog would when greeting strangers.  The trail led all the way to the corridor to the elevator.

Did you say anyhting to the staff?

[Umbarger]

Went on a Carnival cruise once and saw a so called service dog.  It had a service animal vest on.  It peed in the middle of the buffet.  It barked all the time and wasn't even lease trained.  A service dog it was not. On the other hand I have seen real service dogs on cruises.  They know how to hold their "business" until they get to their box.  They never ever make a sound unless they are trained to do so to warn their owners of medical problems.  They are highly trained animals.  It's horrible how some people break the rules.  

[Presto2]

I might be wrong but I don't even know if we have such a thing as an Emotional Support Dog in the UK. Have seen Hearing Dogs for the Deaf and Guide Dogs for the Blind. Thinking about it I don't think I've ever seen a dog in a push chair or dressed as described above. Am hoping it doesn't cross the Atlantic and become the 'latest' thing over here …. groan ….