tvaud

It's hard waiting isn't it? I hope you get yours very soon.

 

He needs to do more training as he's only 14 months old. Much also depends on my health (as in whether I need surgery).

 

Here's a photo of him when he was just a little boy:

 

Oh! What a cutie pie!!!

We will be taking our first Christmas/New Year cruise this year. Can any of you chime in on what it's like? Photos of decorations or events on board? Do you decorate your cabin?

We will be on the Ocean Princess.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for late seating at 7:30.

I remember earlier dining times in Alaska as well...on the Island. For the Ocean, we are doing the 14 day Caribbean during the Christmas holidays. I am hoping for a little earlier, but I won't hold my breath...

Cindra, that is a beautiful photo of three beautiful people! Thank you for taking the extra efforts to share.

 

Beckie

Yeah! It worked! Thank you for letting me know...and thanks for the compliment. You are too kind.

Cindra

Hey - found this the other day; it has been out for a while but worth a second look if you have already seen it - this one is for Fairbourne and DisneyDad! and all the other puppy trainers:

 

OK, I'm crying. That is a beautiful video.

OK...I am going to try this photo posting thing one more time... Keep your fingers crossed. This is a formal photo taken of the three of us on board.

http://www1.snapfish.com/snapfish/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=9081239015/a=9385951_9385951/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=snapfish/

Let me know the result, please.

Cindra

OMG my poor TA. I just saw the Panama Canal cruise and it's not that bad a price. If I moved my Dream cruise to then, I could do it. Hmmmmm, temptation.

 

I think I've read on here people have done the PC cruises with service dogs....

We just did one last month. The prices usually drop, so hang on and wait to pay in full until the end. We received several price drops, and even extra OBC AND pre-paid gratuities! The biggest price drop we received was over $600 each. We also had the option to upgrade at the same price and not take the price drop, but we opted for the drop. I loved our cabin, so upgrading to a mini didn't motivate me.

Let me know if you need any info on that cruise. We were on the Coral Princess.

Cindra

Last month on the Coral, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the traditional dining times were changed to 5:15 and 7:30. We tend to select late dining, and DH doesn't always like to eat at 8:15. For those of you who have sailed on the Ocean Princess, are the dining times 6 & 8:15 or are they earlier?Thanks.

Cindra,

 

Where are the photos? In something like Photobucket? On your computer?

I tried to post a photo here...a page or two back...but it wouldn't post for some unknown reason. Do I need to upload everything to a photo site and share the link?

What am I doing wrong when trying to post here on CC?

Cindra

Thanks! :)

How many formal nights are on a 14 day cruise? 3?

My attempt at posting some pics has failed miserably. :( I followed the procedure listed, but it didn't post. I am in dire need of photo help. The photographers took some great pics of the three of us on formal night that I'd love to share.

Looks like I will be researching more ports. The cruise blueshave gotten the best of me and so we have booked one of the last cruises of the Ocean Princess for the upcoming Christmas/New Year cruise. I have wanted to cruise on a small ship again, so this will probably be one of the last chances we will get. All of the ports are Caribbean islands, so I am keeping my fingers crossed that we don't get any forbidden ports. This cruise will also be visiting a few islands that I have not been to, so I am really excited...and so is Bill!:eek: He never gets excited until the morning we are leaving for the ship. I just hope Pedro will like this potty box better than on the Coral. We will be working on that situation from now until we leave, so there will be no worries. This time, at least we won't have to jump through as many hoops. Most of the vaccinations are still good, the chip is the correct one, and all we should need is the "form."

Is anyone else planning a cruise or trip?

Cindra

Now that we are officially in the cruise blues phase, I am looking to book another one....but nothing is really jumping out and biting me. The 14 day on the Ocean Princess looks fabulous at Christmas time, but at this point, we are not sure if Bill will be able to get away then. Hmmm...what to do?

Any suggestions?

By the way, it's been snowing here in Philadelphia all day too. And, as of 6:45pm, give or take a few minutes...it is officially Spring! I'm hoping that the rain will wash the snow away, so I don't have to go out and shovel. It's supposed to be 50 here tomorrow, so hopefully, it will all melt away.

What a great story, Roz!!

OK, I'm going to attempt to post a pic from the cruise. If this doesn't work, maybe one of you could post some pointers for me....and I don't mean the dog breed. ;)

Crossing my fingers... Crap! What did I do wrong?

Cindra

Do you have contact info for Jorge Ramirez Morales?

 

 

 

thanks, Dianne

I contacted him directly at his email address: jorgel.cr@hotmail.com

He will reply quickly and will create a tour that fits your needs, while taking into account your capabilities. I would use him again.

Cindra

Can't blame you! Not nasty at all. I'm interested in this because I doubt I'll take my dog ashore in some of the ports in Central America on our cruise next month. But my husband and I might take turns.

Don't be afraid to take your dog ashore in Central America. We had no trouble on shore at all. Our private tour guide checked out everything with all of the places we were to visit to make sure they were both dog and wheelchair friendly. We used Jorge Ramirez Morales in Costa Rica. He was the most efficient tour company there, always quickly returning my emails. We felt very confident with him. In Panama, Bill took a ship tour to Panama City and the other two locks of the canal. He left the dog on board with me, but said he could have brought him, as there would have been no issues.

As soon as I get the photos downloaded, I will try to post some.

Ah, gotcha. I was trying to figure out why I got confused and thought it was your husband's! Just remember that the dog doesn't have access in public when not with your husband - it might be different on a cruise ship due to the circumstances, but in the States only your husband has the right to have the dog with him.

 

 

 

Which security staff do you mean and what was the issue?

 

 

 

I would recommend artificial K-9 grass, as you could get into issues trying to bring live plants onboard the ship.

The security people I was referring to are the ones who scan your cruise card whenever you get on and off the ship. Toward the end of the cruise, the info in their scanners was not current. In Costa Rica when we scanned out, they stopped us and said the dog was not allowed off the ship in Panama. I looked at her and said, "Yes, but this is Costa Rica..." Then she let us go. In Jamaica, my husband stayed on board with the dog, as he was not permitted to enter Jamaica. When security scanned my card, she stopped me again and said, "The dog is not allowed off the ship." I looked at her and said, "Do you see a dog?" I guess I was tired...or tired of the misinformation. I wasn't nasty, just being honest.

Hi Cindra,

 

 

 

In Colombia did you take a ship tour or private tour?

 

 

 

Dianne

Dianne,

It was a ship tour. The one we did in Costa Rica was a private tour.

Cinda, loved your report! Can't wait to see those photos. What finally transpired for Colombia? Did you have to pay their fee and see a vet?

 

 

 

You are smart to be lingering in Florida. We've had dreary rain and cold for days, more forecast ahead (at least in our part of the East Coast) with freezing rain on parts of I-95. Enjoy that sunshine!!

 

 

 

Fascinated by the things Princess provided. Thank you for those details. I think I may write a polite letter to Celebrity's Access depart with helpful suggestions of some of the things other ships/lines do understand are needed for service dog relief areas. We have two more cruises booked with them in the future, and hope the preventable hassles can be minimized.

We did have to meet with the local vet in Colombia. Actually, he came on board with the other officials, looked at Pedro for about a minute. Then, he spent the next 30 minutes filling out an official document. It was all in Spanish, so I have no idea what it said. We did have to pay $30 in cash to the Colombian officials. Not sure if it was the vet fee or for something else. In port, on our tour, Pedro was treated very well by the tour guides and the jewelry making school. They even got him a dish of water. The only dog we encountered there was a police dog at the shopping area of the pier, who looked at Pedro and walked on. No strays in sight.

We did have a few strays around us at an open air beach restaurant in Costa Rica, but they didn't bother Pedro. They were just looking for food. Bill kept Pedro in the sling, just in case.

At the last minute in Panama, our friend wanted to do a land tour with Bill. We hadn't planned to get off the ship, so the ship's rep didn't get Pedro cleared. I stayed on board with him while the men went on tour. That is when the drink incident happened, and also when that annoying man was bothering us. It all worked out in the end.

The security staff didn't have their act together in Costa Rica or Jamaica...and we had to correct them, but that was minor. All in all, things went smoothly...but next time, we may bring a square of sod with us.

Glad we planned to stay in Florida another week. The weather at home is going to be nasty this week. I can't wait till we can call Florida home.

Cindra

Well, we are off the Coral Princess and staying another week in Florida. We were so proud of Pedro for doing so well on his first cruise. He was the star of the ship. Everyone knew his name. We had so many passengers come up to us with positive comments or questions about him. Everyone wanted to pet him...some asked, some didn't. Pedro took all the attention in stride and was on his best behavior. Only once did we encounter a man who was annoying him. I politely asked the man to stop, but he didn't. I just pulled Pedro away from that side and kept him out of view. Pedro did watch over us. I swear he was giving this man the 'stink eye.'

His potty box was two decks down and all the way forward, in a crew area. Our cabin was forward on the port side, and at times, it was a haul to get to the box. Pedro did not care for the wood chips in the box. I made a comment to our cabin stewardess about it...by the way, she was in love with Pedro and would do anything for him. Within an hour, a sheet of AstroTurf was placed in part of the box. At first, he laid down on it, but eventually used it. The ship provided a bucket filled with spray sanitizer, paper towels and thicker towels, like Handi-wipes. There was also a covered marked trash can for waste.

Our cabin stewardess even made special towel animals for Pedro. She would also arrange his toy on the bed in different positions. It was so cute.

I took lots of pictures, but have to wait till I get home to post them on my computer. I got a kick out of watching Pedro looking at the ocean through the balcony glass. Just the way he would look down at the water was so funny. He loved laying in the sun.

As I feared, Bill did start to have an episode one night late in the cruise, but Pedro jumped into action and all was well again. Bill tried to push him away, but Pedro was persistent and did his job. I was relieved.

Oh, I stopped by the Captain's Circle desk and started a Princess Passport for Pedro. It will be fun to keep track of his travels too. The day we were in the canal, I got an idea that I should write a series of books..."Pedro Travels the World." It was very early in the morning...

I was concerned about returning to the U.S., and going through customs/immigration, but no one said 'boo.' Pedro was in his sling and I don't even think the customs agent saw him.

Someone on board said I would have to return Pedro's forms to his vet. Is this true or can I just dispose of them now?

Cindra

You take such good care of Pedro, you forgot to take care of you.

 

 

 

Why didn't they place the potty box on your deck?

 

 

 

It was very nice of them to try and accommodate you by finding turf for him.

 

 

 

I'm thinking of bringing artificial turf with me on Horton's next cruise in April. I'll tightly roll it up and since I travel with a "granny cart" it will just be sitting in the corner of the cart and will be placed on the conveyor when going through immigration. It's pretty self explanatory! And, is easy to bring along when driving to the port. I wouldn't do this if I were flying.

 

 

 

Thanks for keeping us in the loop. Don't you feel like Pedro has "papparzzi following him with all the questions, etc. by other passengers?"

They told me that this spot was the only place they could put his potty box. It's not that inconvenient. It's right by the secret doors.

Pedro loved the canal today. He is currently sleeping next to me. Today after trivia, which we won, his leash got tangled as I was grabbing my cane, and a drink fell over and spilled on him. Then the glass fell on him and he let out a little yelp. He got skittish, so I quickly got him out of there. There was also a man who approached him from behind me and he let out a bark, which is totally out of character for him. Then the man kept egging him on, which annoyed me... So, I tried to keep Pedro away from him as best as I could. This was the first person on board that he did not like. I kept Pedro on my lap for the rest of trivia. Waiting for Bill to get back from his tour.

Tomorrow is our private tour in Limon, Costa Rica. Will report back then.

Cindra

Hi everyone!

Just checking in. It's been an interesting trip, so far. My BiPAP machine died the night before the cruise, so I'm using Bill's CPAP. Pedro is being an angel and almost everyone has fallen in love with him on board. Only one hitch, Pedro is not liking the wood chips in the potty box. He held his water...et al...until Aruba yesterday. I feel sorry for that palm tree... I pulled some grass from Aruba, and put it in the potty box, but even that didn't work. Talking to our cabin stewardess, she said she would ask if they would put some turf in it...and they did at last visit. Pedro laid right down on it. Silly boy. Found a beach resort in Aruba that is dog friendly...Reflextions...they even had a big metal water bowl for him. Taxis are dog friendly there too. No one looked or bothered with us from immigration in Aruba, but we were asked to carry copies of his focus with us. Next stop is Columbia tomorrow. They are being pains. Ship is keeping us informed of their requirements and are charging us an additional fee....$30, but not etched in stone yet...cash. Their local vet also has to examine him. Will let you know more on that tomorrow.

Everyone on board knows Pedro now. He is the only service dog on the ship for this cruise. My throat is getting scratchy from all of the times we have had to explain to people that he is indeed a service dog, even though he is small. I feel like we are educating the public this cruise. The veterans on board are anxious for Bill and Pedro to attend the vet get together to hear more about the work Pedro does.

Oh, the potty box is 2 decks down from us, in a crew area and out of the way...near the "super secret doors" for those who have traveled on this ship or the Island. I am so glad they put a piece of turf on the box now.

Sorry about the Port Everglades webcam shot. I was all ready and waiting, but we left late....and, I passed out from dehydration, so I spent sail away in the ships medical center. I'm ok now though.

Having fun...and Pedro is loving it!

Cindra