dogs on board

On my recent cruise I was surprised to see a dog on board. It wasn't a dog that was being used by someone who was visually impaired. It was a little white dog (not more than a foot long) that had on a sweater labelled "service dog" and he/she was on a leash which was held by a lady in a wheelchair who was being pushed by a man (whom I assume to be her husband). They made quite an entrance around the ship wherever they went..funny thing is that they turned out to be my cabin neighbours...when I went out on my balcony that first day I heard a growl and saw this little angry face staring up at me..teeth barred...looking like he wanted a bite of me and though the owners called him back..every time we went out we'd be greeted by barks and growls and those evil eyes...it was almost funny. But..I couldn't for the life of me understand what service this dog was providing..other than companionship? Otherwise would Princess have allowed him on board? What is the policy about animals on board? Just curious...

Camelia

On my recent cruise I was surprised to see a dog on board. It wasn't a dog that was being used by someone who was visually impaired. It was a little white dog (not more than a foot long) that had on a sweater labelled "service dog" and he/she was on a leash which was held by a lady in a wheelchair who was being pushed by a man (whom I assume to be her husband). They made quite an entrance around the ship wherever they went..funny thing is that they turned out to be my cabin neighbours...when I went out on my balcony that first day I heard a growl and saw this little angry face staring up at me..teeth barred...looking like he wanted a bite of me and though the owners called him back..every time we went out we'd be greeted by barks and growls and those evil eyes...it was almost funny. But..I couldn't for the life of me understand what service this dog was providing..other than companionship? Otherwise would Princess have allowed him on board? What is the policy about animals on board? Just curious...

 

Camelia

Princess cannot ask too many questions and unfortunatley there are abusers of the situation. :(

Here is an entire recent thread on this very question....

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1980293&highlight=dogs

Princess cannot ask too many questions and unfortunatley there are abusers of the situation. :(

Right you are. There are Service Animals then there are "service animals" wink-wink.:eek::D

Service dogs are used for -

Alerting for help

Alerting prior to a seizure (diabetic, epilepsy and other types of seizures)

Alerting to a change in insulin levels

Open/close doors, drawers and refrigerators

Pick up dropped items

Assist with mobility issues

Mitigate the challenges of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)

Assist the hearing impaired, those with autism and so much more

Service Dogs come in many different sizes with just as many job descriptions. I know of someone who has a small dog that is a social emotional service animal. Not only does the dog give comfort to the owner, but also is a therapy dog for nursing homes and other care facilities. The dog is very calm and friendly. Just imagine a little lap dog allowing elders to sit and pet her. She is in "high" demand over the larger canines.

Unfortunately, it is very easy to get a "service dog" vest and papers. I can't imagine a dog with the disposition you described as being a professional dog. I am sorry that your balcony time was less than quiet and peaceful.

Princess requires you to fill out a bunch of paperwork to insure that your service dog is a real service dog.. They do indeed ask for proper paperwork. A service dog can be a dog that is trained for many things such as hearing impaired, epilepsy ,picking up things off the floor for someone that is in a wheelchair etc. Service dogs are no longer only seeing-eye dogs. All real service dogs have to have professional training, usually months of training. Comfort dogs or therapy dogs are not allowed on Princess cruise ships.

On my recent cruise I was surprised to see a dog on board. It wasn't a dog that was being used by someone who was visually impaired. It was a little white dog (not more than a foot long) that had on a sweater labelled "service dog" and he/she was on a leash which was held by a lady in a wheelchair who was being pushed by a man (whom I assume to be her husband). They made quite an entrance around the ship wherever they went..funny thing is that they turned out to be my cabin neighbours...when I went out on my balcony that first day I heard a growl and saw this little angry face staring up at me..teeth barred...looking like he wanted a bite of me and though the owners called him back..every time we went out we'd be greeted by barks and growls and those evil eyes...it was almost funny. But..I couldn't for the life of me understand what service this dog was providing..other than companionship? Otherwise would Princess have allowed him on board? What is the policy about animals on board? Just curious...

 

Camelia

Service Dogs come in many different sizes with just as many job descriptions. I know of someone who has a small dog that is a social emotional service animal. Not only does the dog give comfort to the owner, but also is a therapy dog for nursing homes and other care facilities. The dog is very calm and friendly. Just imagine a little lap dog allowing elders to sit and pet her. She is in "high" demand over the larger canines.

 

Unfortunately, it is very easy to get a "service dog" vest and papers. I can't imagine a dog with the disposition you described as being a professional dog. I am sorry that your balcony time was less than quiet and peaceful.

Princess requires you to fill out a bunch of paperwork to insure that your service dog is a real service dog.. They do indeed ask for proper paperwork. A service dog can be a dog that is trained for many things such as hearing impaired, epilepsy ,picking up things off the floor for someone that is in a wheelchair etc. Service dogs are no longer only seeing-eye dogs. All real service dogs have to have professional training, usually months of training. Comfort dogs or therapy dogs are not allowed on Princess cruise ships.[/quote]

 

 

That being said paperwork is available from a variety of sources on the internet, which look very convincing. Just because someone has papers does not mean it is a legitmate service dog.

No dog that is aggressive should ever be considered a service dog.

 

As far as the above in red, we have met several people who have had both types of dogs onboard Princess ships, who told you that?

That being said paperwork is available from a variety of sources on the internet, which look very convincing. Just because someone has papers does not mean it is a legitmate service dog.

No dog that is aggressive should ever be considered a service dog.

This is quite true... when I worked in retail, folks would come in with pets that were obviously not service dogs (true service dogs must pass a series of tests), but because they had a "service dog" sweater, we'd have to allow them. Not cool...

Still not sure if this dog was a real service dog but without knowing all the facts I guess nothing should be assumed. Hopefully innocent people with real need won't be victims of those who abuse this by bringing pets on board labelled as service dogs..that would be sad indeed!

Camelia

No service dog should be growling and baring their teeth at anyone, but it may or may not be a real service dog. The fact that this person was in a wheelchair makes me believe it was real. But who am I to judge. A person I know that has a real service dog is the one who told me comfort dog are not allowed on Princess cruises. Now perhaps they recently changed their policy, I don't know. Other cruise lines have different rules for service dogs. The biggest problem is people do lie about all sorts of things and often they get away with it. It hurts the honest people for sure.

We have golden retrivers but would never take them onboard ,going to really miss them for two weeks,

Same with our Chesapeake Bay Retrievers. We've decided that two weeks is about the longest we can stand being separated from them.

On my recent cruise I was surprised to see a dog on board. It wasn't a dog that was being used by someone who was visually impaired. It was a little white dog (not more than a foot long) that had on a sweater labelled "service dog" and he/she was on a leash which was held by a lady in a wheelchair who was being pushed by a man (whom I assume to be her husband). They made quite an entrance around the ship wherever they went..funny thing is that they turned out to be my cabin neighbours...when I went out on my balcony that first day I heard a growl and saw this little angry face staring up at me..teeth barred...looking like he wanted a bite of me and though the owners called him back..every time we went out we'd be greeted by barks and growls and those evil eyes...it was almost funny. But..I couldn't for the life of me understand what service this dog was providing..other than companionship? Otherwise would Princess have allowed him on board? What is the policy about animals on board? Just curious...

 

Camelia

It might very well be a service dog. There are dogs now that help with epilepsy and similar medical issues.

Princess cannot ask too many questions and unfortunatley there are abusers of the situation. :(

Princess does require people to submit a letter outlining what services the service animal provides them on a daily basis.

My big fella is a trained service animal for my partner and has saved his life on more than one occasion, he is very special to us. We still don't take him on ships as we feel that is not comfortable for him and the other passengers as he can be a little intimidating even though he is a very gentle giant. Also he doesn't like flying but flights are short. When he wears his jacket he knows he is working. I understand many people need service dogs with them all the time. I don't leave my partners side when our dog is not with us. He loves when grandma comes to stay and look after him and his little girl, she's not a service dog but just as well behaved. No true service dog will snarl and bare teeth! That is unacceptable behavior.

It might very well be a service dog. There are dogs now that help with epilepsy and similar medical issues.

As others have said, a properly trained service dog would not snarl and bark.

We just got off the Royal Princess and while we were hanging by the pool, a small white dog was being walked around. I didn't notice any 'service' designation and thought it was strange that it was on the ship. Kind of walked around like he/she owned it though!

Service dogs are not regulated so until there are federal or states laws in place this is only going to get worse.

Top three google searches for "service dogs" are sites you can pay to get your dog registered.

http://registerservicedogs.com/?gclid=CIK2ycSn_7wCFahj7AodHngAMg

The airlines are really starting to take a hit on this, which they will respond by raising our costs to fly.

Oh, and they don't have to wear a service dog vest, they only need to be on a leash and the owner needs to carry a certificate.

No service dog should be growling and baring their teeth at anyone, but it may or may not be a real service dog.

I don't understand why the surprise at this behavior. Dogs are territorial and the original poster apparently was looking into the next balcony to see the dog. It may be perfectly docile with hundreds of people, but when it comes to violating their territory, that's a totally different thing.

Besides, maybe his service was to guard the jewels or something.

I don't understand why the surprise at this behavior. Dogs are territorial and the original poster apparently was looking into the next balcony to see the dog. It may be perfectly docile with hundreds of people, but when it comes to violating their territory, that's a totally different thing.

 

Besides, maybe his service was to guard the jewels or something.

A small dog could be looking under the balcony walls and barking. The OP didn't have to be looking on the balcony to be seen by the dog.

I had a dog next to me once and would hear it bark on the balcony, but it never growled or snarled at me. It was a small dog and they walked it around the ship all the time. The man in the couple was a doctor and it occurred to me that they did paperwork just to get their dog to come with them, but I could have been wrong. I tried not to judge.

A small dog could be looking under the balcony walls and barking. The OP didn't have to be looking on the balcony to be seen by the dog.

 

I had a dog next to me once and would hear it bark on the balcony, but it never growled or snarled at me. It was a small dog and they walked it around the ship all the time. The man in the couple was a doctor and it occurred to me that they did paperwork just to get their dog to come with them, but I could have been wrong. I tried not to judge.

Thats what I was thinking, there is a lot of room under the divider.

She didn't say she looked around the divider.

I know a girl (I call her a girl but she is probably in her early 20's), who is autistic. She has a "comfort/service" monkey. A very small capuchin monkey. I don't know if they take it into restaurants, but I know they take it everywhere else.

But to my knowledge the almost never travel.

I don't have anything against monkeys, but I would rather have a dog.... Monkeys kinda freak me out and scare me a little. Especially the little ones, but that's my own issue! Lol.

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Thats what I was thinking, there is a lot of room under the divider.

She didn't say she looked around the divider.

Just to clarify..definitely not looking into the next balcony..I would never do that since I respect privacy (their's and my own). I had just gone out and was just sitting in my chair when I heard the growl and looked down at the source. His little face was half way through the opening between and thankfully that's as far as he was able to get! Perhaps he thought he was defending his territory..the balcony divider being unimportant in his mind of course..

I know a girl (I call her a girl but she is probably in her early 20's), who is autistic. She has a "comfort/service" monkey. A very small capuchin monkey. I don't know if they take it into restaurants, but I know they take it everywhere else.

 

But to my knowledge the almost never travel.

 

I don't have anything against monkeys, but I would rather have a dog.... Monkeys kinda freak me out and scare me a little. Especially the little ones, but that's my own issue! Lol.

 

 

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An organ grinders monkey scared the bleep out of me when I was a wee tyke. :eek: