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

[DUTRAVEL]

Omggggggggggggg how awful. Wex had an ear infection when we were there. They said he didn't have one, but we disagreed and asked for the vet to look at him when the vet came in one day, never saw the vet. When we got home we took him to our vet right away. And guess what?? He had an ear infection. 😠

 

What's up with that - Henri had an ear infection when we got her too! Then we got that ear cleared up and she got one in the other ear. We have been cleaning her ears twice a week with the ear solution and she hasn't had another one.

 

Dianne

[DUTRAVEL]

That reminds me - I got busy recently, had not yet fed Raylene, ran out to get Chinese food, and we ate. About 7:30 p.m., we were watching TV, and she sat next to me with the most pitiful, mournful expression I've ever seen on that little doggie face. I kept asking Bob what she could possibly want...I thought maybe her water bowl was empty... and when I got up to fill it, it dawned on me. Bad Mom! (Don't anybody rat me out to Dogs for the Deaf!)

 

Henri always reminds me that its almost dinner time by putting her head on my leg. She usually eats at 6:00 and starts reminding me about 5:30pm.

 

Dianne

[DUTRAVEL]

Oh you're such a bad mummy! I laughed out loud reading this! :D

 

In our house Aruba is the time keeper! They get fed in the morning about 8 and then again in the evening, about 6pm, At about 5.59pm, Aruba comes and if I'm sitting in my recliner thinking that I will have to stop reading cruise critic and shift myself and get going and get supper organised, the way she leans against the side of the chair, she hits the reclining button and very quickly I'm reclining back and fore! :eek: or she will come and slap a "heavy" paw on my leg and give me "the look"! If I ignore her, or try to (;)) she will start with little squeals .... the others leave her to it, including Miss Bonnie.

 

 

Laughing at the picture of Aruba hitting the button on the recliner!

 

Dianne

[Caribbean Chris]

Laughing at the picture of Aruba hitting the button on the recliner!

 

Dianne

 

Me, too! I think we need a photo....

 

Never tire of hearing about the Fairbourne family.

[Caribbean Chris]

What's up with that - Henri had an ear infection when we got her too! Then we got that ear cleared up and she got one in the other ear. We have been cleaning her ears twice a week with the ear solution and she hasn't had another one.

 

Dianne

 

Labs must be prone to ear issues. When we moved to Florida, the new vet checked her ears and told me to start squirting the stuff in twice a week, also - she demonstrated and massaged Raylene's ear areas, and then wiped out the deep inside of each ear with a cotton ball. So now that's our routine, too.

[rangeley]

Curious about the cosequin. Is that someone CCI recommended or was it your vet? The only thing Henri takes is the fish oil capsules that CCI had her on.

 

Dianne

 

I think it was CCI. They told us to join IAADP. They give free cosequin and welactin for service dogs.

[Insuregal]

Mayor of Lurkerville checking in! I accidentally hit the unsubscribe button on my phone, so trying to pop in and make sure I will still get my daily email fix of cruising with a service dog.

(Host Walt, is this all it takes to get subscribed again?)

 

All the comments about your dogs and their times for eating gave me lots of laughs. Gibson will start trying to get his meals anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour early, breakfast, lunch and dinner. We have a clock on our mantel that chimes with a bird call on the hour. (It didn't chime for a few years, and then started up again after I gave it a good dusting out.) Since it started again Gibson knows which bird goes with each of his meal times.

 

Usually, when he starts asking for any particular meal, we put up our hands and show him how many minutes until time to eat. If it is 10 minutes both hands go up and we tell him 10 minutes until time to eat. You all get the picture. Sometimes he will rest a bit, and try again, other times just rest with his chin on the floor. Now, if the correct hour's bird calls out he JUMPS up and gives us this look as if to say, "I just heard the eleven o'clock bird, so I know it's time for my lunch!" How did he get to be so smart? We really have to work to stay ahead of him.

 

Our Chiefs are headed to Foxborough today. Hoping all your favorite teams play well this weekend.

 

Thanks!

Beckie

[wizard-of-roz]

Anyone ever been on a cruise that supplies doggie life jackets? Thought I read it somewhere.

 

Princess and Carnival both supplied me with a doggy life jacket. That said, I don't think they have an endless supply of them. It's a first come, first served kind of thing!

[wizard-of-roz]

Oh you're such a bad mummy! I laughed out loud reading this! :D

 

In our house Aruba is the time keeper! They get fed in the morning about 8 and then again in the evening, about 6pm, At about 5.59pm, Aruba comes and if I'm sitting in my recliner thinking that I will have to stop reading cruise critic and shift myself and get going and get supper organised, the way she leans against the side of the chair, she hits the reclining button and very quickly I'm reclining back and fore! :eek: or she will come and slap a "heavy" paw on my leg and give me "the look"! If I ignore her, or try to (;)) she will start with little squeals .... the others leave her to it, including Miss Bonnie.

 

But say the words "who wants (insert here Breakfast, Tea, biscuit, dentastix, or intact any word will do) " and they all come running!

 

Bonnie is the only one who gets "lunch" but they all come, in anticipation, and of course, you can't give one bairn without the others! So while Bonnie has her lunch, the others get a Boneo biscuit.

 

Creatures of habit, which is good for us as it makes them relatively easy to train! With food rewards of course!

 

Our last Guide dog trainer wouldn't let us use any dog treats for rewards at the training classes, but this new chap does and what a difference it makes! And we have to bring treats that we only use for training. Their usual treats don't work so well. To put it into human terms, just imagine how you would feel if you just got plain old jelly all the time for pudding, but if you get jelly with lovely thick double cream as a special treat, now you're talking! LOL!

 

We've had some awful weather with local folk flooded out, roads swept away, villages literally cut off, and a castle teetering on the banks of the river - never seen anything like it. Thankfully we live on a hill and not near a river.

 

I'm so glad to hear that all is well [weather wise] for you! I hope the rest of our CC families are all doing good.

 

My heart goes out to the people who have damage and have to leave their homes with their furbabies!

 

Our FEMA laws have now been changed [since Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans] and the federal agencies that were helping did not allow folks to bring their dogs on the rescue transportation, many were left behind. It was so heartbreaking. Now, as long as the dogs/cats aren't vicious they are included in the rescue mission. Thank goodness!

[wizard-of-roz]

The first cruise we are going on with Henri will in October. Luckily we are leaving from San Francisco (near where we live) and we will be dropped off at the ship. It will be easy to load her food for 18 days onto the ship.

 

One of us should start the dog food delivery service!

 

Dianne

 

So much easier when the port is in your own city. I love driving to the port.

 

Unfortunately there aren't enough Service Dogs going on cruises to make the business very profitable.

[wizard-of-roz]

Curious about the cosequin. Is that someone CCI recommended or was it your vet? The only thing Henri takes is the fish oil capsules that CCI had her on.

 

Dianne

 

I buy the chewable glucoscamine/chondroitin from Entirely Pets dot com. I buy the large tub and give Horton one with breakfast and one with dinner.

Edited January 15, 2016 by wizard-of-roz

[wizard-of-roz]

What's up with that - Henri had an ear infection when we got her too! Then we got that ear cleared up and she got one in the other ear. We have been cleaning her ears twice a week with the ear solution and she hasn't had another one.

 

Dianne

 

My first Service Dog, Brenda, came home with a small callous on one of her legs. I showed it to the trainer when we were in Team Training and she told me to take her over to the Vet's office and have them look at it. The Vet said it's just a skin tag don't worry about it.

 

When we got home I had a Vet check with my own Vet set-up for a week later and he took it off and sent it in for biopsy [because he thought it looked suspicious], sure enough, it was a rare cancer that only grows in dogs stomach's and brains. Brenda had to go in for further surgery to make sure that all the surrounding lymph nodes were clear. She never had a recurrence and lived to be 14 years old. But, my Vet said that had this been ignored the cells would have spread and who knows what would have happened. I informed CCI and they were so surprised!

 

If your suspicious of anything on your dog have it checked out immediately. Horton had a wart on one of his legs and I had it removed right away. I'm not taking any chances with my babies health!

Edited January 15, 2016 by wizard-of-roz

[rangeley]

GO PATS! Sorry Beckie!

[rangeley]

Rangeley had a callous too!!! Geez we've had similar dogs. His ended up getting big and it would bleed. Ugh it got nasty. Then it would heel and be fine. I'm not sure why he didn't have it taken off, maybe they couldnt.

[wizard-of-roz]

Rangeley had a callous too!!! Geez we've had similar dogs. His ended up getting big and it would bleed. Ugh it got nasty. Then it would heel and be fine. I'm not sure why he didn't have it taken off, maybe they couldnt.

 

Labs are notorious for growths, fatty tumors and cancer. Brenda had a fatty tumor on her side which she developed at the age of 5. The doctor said it would be more serious to try and remove it than to just leave it alone. It would be for cosmetic reasons only.

 

Because she was black you could hardly notice it except it made her look wider!

 

I never did anything about it and it didn't seem to bother her!

 

She was my "lumpy" girl!

[Host Walt]

Mayor of Lurkerville checking in! I accidentally hit the unsubscribe button on my phone, so trying to pop in and make sure I will still get my daily email fix of cruising with a service dog.

(Host Walt, is this all it takes to get subscribed again?)...

 

That should do the job. If it doesn't please let me know by email.

 

hostwalt@cruisecritic.com

[wizard-of-roz]

OMG! Cruise Critic.....You've bumped me out, I'm using a temporary login code........so annoying-How long does one have to be on these boards to get some respect!

 

Anyway.....Happy Weekend everyone!!!!!

[Insuregal]

GO PATS! Sorry Beckie!

 

No worries! I just love playoff season. It's been a lotta years since the Chiefs made it this far. The whole city has been on a sports high the last two years with the Royals. I better not leave out Sporting KC, or someone will holler. Oh well, guess we'll see how it goes tomorrow.😊

 

Happy Friday!

[Insuregal]

That should do the job. If it doesn't please let me know by email.

 

hostwalt@cruisecritic.com

 

Thanks bunches! I am going to leave my phone alone when my Cruise Critic emails pop in. Just wait until I can read on my computer or tablet from now on.

[Hoover]

We travel with a service dog..she is going to be on her 6th cruise in September and 7th in November.....We've learned a lot and have some suggestions for you....

• Don't be hesitant to do it.....it's wonderful! And truly has made our cruising so much more fun!!!!!! :p
  
• We've cruised on Celebrity/NCL/Princess/Carnival and HAL.
  
• The Best (most accomodating-all around) - HAL
  
• The Best set-up (potty-box) - NCL/Princess
  
• The Best crew for dog friendliness HAL/Princess
  
• Passenger friendliness...every ship we've ever been on. We only 1 passenger in all of our cruises who absolutely refused to eat in the Buffet area, with a dog!

If you have any questions about the ship requirements/easy way to deal with "special needs" departments/cabins/dining area/potty box/food/exercise/hotel/excursions/airplanes, etc. Ask away......

I don't want to bore you with all the details...so, I'll let you lead the way! ;)

 

Good Evening,

 

I will be cruising in November with my mobility support dog who is a 160-165 lb Newfoundland service dog. This will be his 1st cruise, he is super relaxed with all other travel so I anticipate the same reaction on the cruise. He enjoys hotels but always calls first dibs on the bathroom. Try getting him to move at 2 am..... LOL !

 

Anyhow, we will be traveling for 2 weeks on Celebrity going to Bonaire, Barbados, Curacao

St. Maarten, St Kitts and St Lucia & Aruba.

 

I have no firm plans to stay on the ship at get off at each of these islands, with the exception of St. Maarten ( tender only, and wheelchair do not mix for my comfort )

 

So I have printed out the paperwork that I have found so far, but feel that I need a spread sheet to figure out when to do the different shots and testing. What all have the rest of you done to keep track of everything ? I really want to get everything started but we are not cruising until 11/27.

 

Help, suggestions, Ideas are all appreciated.

 

Thanks.

[alexspepa]

Good Evening,

 

I will be cruising in November with my mobility support dog who is a 160-165 lb Newfoundland service dog. This will be his 1st cruise, he is super relaxed with all other travel so I anticipate the same reaction on the cruise. He enjoys hotels but always calls first dibs on the bathroom. Try getting him to move at 2 am..... LOL !

 

Anyhow, we will be traveling for 2 weeks on Celebrity going to Bonaire, Barbados, Curacao

St. Maarten, St Kitts and St Lucia & Aruba.

 

I have no firm plans to stay on the ship at get off at each of these islands, with the exception of St. Maarten ( tender only, and wheelchair do not mix for my comfort )

 

So I have printed out the paperwork that I have found so far, but feel that I need a spread sheet to figure out when to do the different shots and testing. What all have the rest of you done to keep track of everything ? I really want to get everything started but we are not cruising until 11/27.

 

Help, suggestions, Ideas are all appreciated.

 

Thanks.

 

Hi Hoover - glad you found this thread. The experts will be along in a while to advise you; but in the meantime you can peruse the almost 900 pages and 16000 posts of the longest running thread on CC.

 

Everyone here is friendly, and we don't discuss tipping, smoking or dress codes(except for the dogs of course - most of them have tuxedos!). Well actually some for the Service Animal owners will talk about tipping employees who have been nice to their fantastic Dogs, but I digress. And maybe a smoking comment or two have surfaced...but anyway have fun and you will get your answers in a day or so.

[thephantomsgirl]

Hi Hoover and welcome!

 

Had class with Jagger yesterday. I dropped my purse and he picked it up and gave it to me, no problem!

 

Of course part of the class he was like, "talk to the paw". (sigh)

 

I leave a week from today. If the weather holds well I'll stay overnight at the port, otherwise I'll cancel the room and just drive to the port on Monday morning.

[Hoover]

Hi Hoover and welcome!

 

Had class with Jagger yesterday. I dropped my purse and he picked it up and gave it to me, no problem!

 

Of course part of the class he was like, "talk to the paw". (sigh)

 

I leave a week from today. If the weather holds well I'll stay overnight at the port, otherwise I'll cancel the room and just drive to the port on Monday morning.

 

 

Good morning,

 

Have you cruised with your dog before ? Where in Florida are you from ? Duncan ( svc dog ) and I are from

St. Cloud.

 

Duncan starts "college" next month back with his trainer to learn a few new advanced skills that I need since my condition has deteriorated this past year.

 

Using his paws he will give high five, and does please and thank you're.

[thephantomsgirl]

Jagger hasn't cruised yet. He won't be going on this one as they thought he and I aren't spot on yet. He was dropping things when retrieving but he is doing much better with that. So he is still in "college".

 

We've been doing private training sessions each week which is helping.

 

I live in Central Florida - Mount Dora right now.

 

Feel free to post photos of Duncan - we love photos of our boys and girls! :)

[Hoover]

Jagger hasn't cruised yet. He won't be going on this one as they thought he and I aren't spot on yet. He was dropping things when retrieving but he is doing much better with that. So he is still in "college".

 

We've been doing private training sessions each week which is helping.

 

I live in Central Florida - Mount Dora right now.

 

Feel free to post photos of Duncan - we love photos of our boys and girls! :)

 

 

 

I do not know how to post a photo. I will have to do some searching on this topic.