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

[Algebralovr]

Wow, I've been gone a while!

Roz - happy belated birthday!  It sounds like you had a house full of fun!  I'm sure it was fun, and it was nice to get the house back to you and Horton as well.

 

My new job is going well.  Well the job is, Scooter missing the going.  On Tuesday and Thursday, we are working intently from home.  On MWF, I still teach at the U in the mornings, then work from home afternoon and into the evening a little bit.  

 

I'm enjoying reading about everyone's dogs!

[wizard-of-roz]

2 hours ago, Algebralovr said:

Wow, I've been gone a while!

Roz - happy belated birthday!  It sounds like you had a house full of fun!  I'm sure it was fun, and it was nice to get the house back to you and Horton as well.

 

My new job is going well.  Well the job is, Scooter missing the going.  On Tuesday and Thursday, we are working intently from home.  On MWF, I still teach at the U in the mornings, then work from home afternoon and into the evening a little bit.  

 

I'm enjoying reading about everyone's dogs!

Thank you so much for the birthday wishes.  

 

I wish you much success on your new job!

[wizard-of-roz]

Happy Weekend Everyone!  🤩

[lindaler]

I see the fake service dog topic on HAL has surfaced again.  Thanks for speaking up for us Roz. You get your points across so well. And that one about the poor stewards having to clean up pee and poop in the rooms and how dirty dogs are was so out of line.  Being hairless Chavela gets a shower almost every time I do. She's probably cleaned then half the passengers.

[rangeley]

I saw the HAL discussion too. Nicely said Roz. 

[wizard-of-roz]

I adore Horton to the ends of the earth......That said, he's more work than five 2 year old's.  He has more needs and never tells me what's going on - His verbal skills suck! 

 

However,  he won't leave a mess in an elevator, or say mean words, or bang on walls and raise his voice.  He won't push or shove his way into a line or try to grab a chair before you do.   As a matter of fact just having him around can actually lower your blood pressure and save your life.

 

Because Horton helps me to be a more independent and active person in society, it's imperative that I take excellent care of him.  And, as you know that means a lot of work.  Anyone who makes light of the work that must be done for our SD's has no idea of what it takes to maintain them.  I fulfill all of Horton's needs with respect and honor for the partner that he is.  He in turn helps me and assists me without reservation.  It's a love, great respect relationship.

 

My biggest complaint would be that our wonderful dogs don't live long enough!

 

I will defend our dogs to the end of my life!

Edited October 6, 2019 by wizard-of-roz

[GUT2407]

1 hour ago, wizard-of-roz said:

I adore Horton to the ends of the earth......That said, he's more work than five 2 year old's.  He has more needs and never tells me what's going on - His verbal skills suck! 

 

However,  he won't leave a mess in an elevator, or say mean words, or bang on walls and raise his voice.  He won't push or shove his way into a line or try to grab a chair before you do.   As a matter of fact just having him around can actually lower your blood pressure and save your life.

 

Because Horton helps me to be a more independent and active person in society, it's imperative that I take excellent care of him.  And, as you know that means a lot of work.  Anyone who makes light of the work that must be done for our SD's has no idea of what it takes to maintain them.  I fulfill all of Horton's needs with respect and honor for the partner that he is.  He in turn helps me and assists me without reservation.  It's a love, great respect relationship.

 

My biggest complaint would be that our wonderful dogs don't live long enough!

 

I will defend our dogs to the end of my life!

Yep they should live as long as us. And al my animals, yes even my fish, get treated like royalty, they didn’t ask to come live with me so will get the best treatment I can possibly give them.

[rpclmc]

16 hours ago, GUT2407 said:

Yep they should live as long as us. And al my animals, yes even my fish, get treated like royalty, they didn’t ask to come live with me so will get the best treatment I can possibly give them.

I never did get having fish.  My daughter got 2 betas when she was in the dorm because that is all they could have for pets.  She brought them home for the summer.

 

Everyone in my family swore I had lost my mind.  I saw her feed them, just threw the food in closed the lid and went to work.  I told her no wonder they weren't eating and depressed.  I started feeding them, I would make sure they came out from their hiding spots, put the food right in front of them and talked to them.  Every time I went by their tanks I would stop and say hi.  

 

They started coming out, greeting me and by the end of summer,  if I put a finger in the top of the tank they would come up for a back petting.  Some days they would do spins when they came out for me.  Their color got better and they put on a bit of weight, looked healthy again.

 

My daughter said they obviously didn't like here and I could have them.  I told her I couldn't keep them since I go back and forth between Idaho and Florida homes and travel a lot.  I told her to show them some loves.

 

I still can't believe I did that with fish.

 

Linda and Halo

 

[GUT2407]

A number of my fish would come for a pat, one would even nibble at my finger. And it so relaxing to watch them swim around.

[rangeley]

One month to go Roz. I'm freaking already! 🤪

[GUT2407]

32 minutes ago, rangeley said:

One month to go Roz. I'm freaking already! 🤪

With all the planning and research you have done, I am sure all will go well.

[wizard-of-roz]

7 hours ago, rangeley said:

One month to go Roz. I'm freaking already! 🤪

You're so cute!  There's so much to do, I'm sure you're as busy as I am: Vet visit, dog food prep, dog med's prep, dog grooming stuff prep, dog grooming visit, dog toys prep, dog collars prep, dog snacks prep, dog poop bags prep, dog artificial turf prep, dog bed prep, dog paperwork prep, [it does seem that it's all about the dog], get luggage down from storage, put tags on bags, clothes/shoes prep, jewelry prep, makeup prep, meds prep.  Get car serviced, tires rotated, etc.   It seems there's so much to do and not enough of me to do it! 

  

I can't wait for the very first meeting of the dogs.  Horton is going to be so excited to have a buddy to lay with at dinner and in the shows.  I can't wait for the formal pictures of the two of them.  It's going to be so much fun to see everyone's reaction to them.  Ebony & Ivory!  😉 

[Caribbean Chris]

Roz and Cindy, the upcoming Gathering of the Labradors is starting to get exciting!

[Caribbean Chris]

Here’s my question for everybody. Does your dog still have his/her dew claws? 

 

The vet for a pet dog we had years ago recommended removing them when the dog was anesthetize anyway for spaying, and it seemed to be a good decision. Raylene arrived with both dew claws on front legs intact. I ALWAYS remind the groomer to trim them, but they end up growing long and sometimes curved. Once on a vacation, she snagged one while running in a field, but not much pain and it fell off the next day. She was fine.

 

This week she jumped up and ran suddenly to go out, and somehow snagged both dew claws painfully Monday night. I didn’t see it happen (Bob did) and we thought it was a mild “ankle” sprain of one paw yesterday morning, but soon realized she was in pain. The vet found that both claws were cracked (one of them was the worst crack he’d seen) so he removed both (the black part of the “toe”) and bandaged her up. 

 

Just curious what your experiences are.

Edited October 9, 2019 by Caribbean Chris

[rangeley]

I actually haven't done anything. Lol  Ok I made the vet and grooming appointment for the dog.  We bought a few new clothes. Thats it. 

 

I cannot wait for the dogs to meet. I have no doubt they will love each other. And it will be fun to watch them interact. 

 

Oakland was sick with a small bout of diarrhea. He had meds and is now on rx food. He has been on Eukanuba dog food since he was a pup. Wexler was also on that and a while after we got him home he had the same problem. So now that Mr. Oak is on the rx food, we feel this is a good time to transition him to another food. He is on Science Diet rx so we are going to put him on SD regular food, which is what we put Wexler on. Hopefully it will be seemless and everything will be good. 

[rangeley]

3 hours ago, Caribbean Chris said:

Here’s my question for everybody. Does your dog still have his/her dew claws? 

 

The vet for a pet dog we had years ago recommended removing them when the dog was anesthetize anyway for spaying, and it seemed to be a good decision. Raylene arrived with both dew claws on front legs intact. I ALWAYS remind the groomer to trim them, but they end up growing long and sometimes curved. Once on a vacation, she snagged one while running in a field, but not much pain and it fell off the next day. She was fine.

 

This week she jumped up and ran suddenly to go out, and somehow snagged both dew claws painfully Monday night. I didn’t see it happen (Bob did) and we thought it was a mild “ankle” sprain of one paw yesterday morning, but soon realized she was in pain. The vet found that both claws were cracked (one of them was the worst crack he’d seen) so he removed both (the black part of the “toe”) and bandaged her up. 

 

Just curious what your experiences are.

I've never heard of removing dew claws from dogs, only cats. Poor baby. 😢

[S.S. Cruisers]

We have always been told that the dew claws should be removed.  They missed Reno's and I remember him catching at least 2 times.  Very painful.  Rockford's are removed and it makes for a nice, long, smooth leg.  They usually removed them when they are first born. 

I am getting so excited for you guys too!  Only a month?  Wow, it will be here before you know it. ❤️ 

[GUT2407]

When we were breeding we always took them off, Max’s breeder left them on futrunately the longer coat gives them a bit of protection, but it sure hurts him when he does catch them on something.

[Algebralovr]

Scooter has his dew claws.  When we first went to the vet, at 8 weeks, she commented about him still having them on.  She was surprised - said that usually they were removed within a few hours of birth.  Well, Scooter was born in a back-yard breeding as an accident.  He got zero vet care as a pup until I got him, although he was fed and well socialized in that family.    So, he still had his dew claws.  At 8 weeks, I didn't see a reason to subject him to the removal.

 

Since then, I've noticed that he uses them to help hold things.  I make sure to trim them every couple of weeks to avoid issues.  They don't wear down at all, since he doesn't walk or run on them.

[wizard-of-roz]

I hope that Oakland is doing well on new food.  Can't wait to meet you all.

 

Brenda had her dew claws intact until she passed at age 14, with never an incident with them.  Horton also has his dew claws with no incident, I remind the groomer to trim them each time we go in.

[allies_daphne]

Just wondering if anyone has had experience with obtaining an IHC via completely electronic means (can be electronically endorsed by USDA vet and also the USDA Ag office).  If so, what was your turnaround time?    I can find alot of information about the VEHCS system, but none that says what the actual time for endorsement once everything is submitted.

We are 29 days away from our Panama Canal cruise, and will be doing this for Colombia.  We have a vet appt 7 days before we sail, but 4 days before we fly to the port (with 2 days being a weekend).  Just trying to anticipate if this could get endorsed prior to our flying out or not.  If not, I think the vet has to email us the endorsed original as an attachment for us to print from the hotel or something.

 

I miss the easy paperwork from the Bahamas...........LOL!

Denise

[wizard-of-roz]

34 minutes ago, allies_daphne said:

Just wondering if anyone has had experience with obtaining an IHC via completely electronic means (can be electronically endorsed by USDA vet and also the USDA Ag office).  If so, what was your turnaround time?    I can find alot of information about the VEHCS system, but none that says what the actual time for endorsement once everything is submitted.

We are 29 days away from our Panama Canal cruise, and will be doing this for Colombia.  We have a vet appt 7 days before we sail, but 4 days before we fly to the port (with 2 days being a weekend).  Just trying to anticipate if this could get endorsed prior to our flying out or not.  If not, I think the vet has to email us the endorsed original as an attachment for us to print from the hotel or something.

 

I miss the easy paperwork from the Bahamas...........LOL!

Denise

Never dealt with this for my Panama Canal cruise.  I believe that these foreign ports are most concerned about dogs that are NOT properly vaccinated and NOT on HeartGuard and NexGuard or similar flea & tick medicine.  For dogs that are on monthly abatement and vaccinated, as certified by your Vet on the Aphis 7001 form, there should be no problem with your dog entering the Panama Canal ports.

Edited October 9, 2019 by wizard-of-roz

[allies_daphne]

Roz, not really worried about the vet clearing him, as he is on all the preventives, and we are not getting off in Grand Cayman, so no titer or Prazaquantil.  The Mexico template is ready to go as well.  We don’t get off in Panama, only through the locks.  Colombia is the only port on our trip that participates in completely electronic heath certificate, so I’m wondering about the possibility of having the approved endorsement in hand, prior to flying to the port (2 business days after visit).  I know it’s not instantaneous when it’s submitted, was just hoping someone had some experience with turnaround time for the VEHCS. 

Appreciate your input, with all the experience you have!!

 

Denise

[alexspepa]

Hey Everyone...I'm going to post this in the ask a question thread as well, but I applied for a new passport and received it in 16 days and I did not expedite...so if anyone is close to renewal now is a good time.

[rangeley]

23 hours ago, wizard-of-roz said:

I hope that Oakland is doing well on new food.  Can't wait to meet you all.

 

He seems to be doing fine on the new food. We can't wait to meet you and Horty too!