Does Anybody Have Experience Cruising With A Service Dog?

[Rick&Jeannie]

Will be cruising soon with a granddaughter who has a service dog.  (I'm not going to get into the reason...let's just accept that for now, please.)  Supposedly she has contacted Carnival as well as the airline in question and everything is arranged.  I'm just curious as to whether anybody has ever been on a cruise with a service animal and were there any issues?

[Schoifmom]

Check out the special needs board here on CC.  There is an entire section devoted to this topic.

[Schoifmom]

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/551529-cruising-with-a-service-dogeverything-you-ever-wanted-to-know/?do=getNewComment

[iamsteph]

3 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Will be cruising soon with a granddaughter who has a service dog.  (I'm not going to get into the reason...let's just accept that for now, please.)  Supposedly she has contacted Carnival as well as the airline in question and everything is arranged.  I'm just curious as to whether anybody has ever been on a cruise with a service animal and were there any issues?

The way you phrased your post makes me wonder if the service dog is an emotional support animal?  Carnival has strict rules and your granddaughter will need to show paperwork at the port.  I'd hate for her to get there and be turned away.  https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/special-needs/service-dogs

 

I haven't traveled with a service dog, but I've seen them onboard.  There's usually a little fake grass area set up somewhere out of the way.  Most guests seemed very respectful although I did see some second looks with people trying to confirm they were indeed seeing a dog on board.  

[Rick&Jeannie]

Nope...it is an official service dog.

[iamsteph]

Glad to hear!  I'm sure taking her service animal on a cruise will be similar to any other vacation she's been on. She will hopefully have a blast 🙂 

[Elaine5715]

7 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Will be cruising soon with a granddaughter who has a service dog.  (I'm not going to get into the reason...let's just accept that for now, please.)  Supposedly she has contacted Carnival as well as the airline in question and everything is arranged.  I'm just curious as to whether anybody has ever been on a cruise with a service animal and were there any issues?

The problems are the typical ones.  People want to pet the animal and are used to those with fraud service dogs allowing it.  Last flight, a guy had a "service dog" in his lap the entire flight and let everyone walking down the aisle pet the dog, offered pets to all the kids and encouraged kids sitting near come over to pet during the flight.  It was a well behaved dog but it wasn't a service dog.  Depending on the port, the dog may need to remain on board.  I was on one cruise with a group of people with Leader Dogs and the dogs never left the ship.  The dogs were too valuable to be exposed to island dogs or risk quarantine on return.  

[Elaine5715]

3 hours ago, Rick&Jeannie said:

Nope...it is an official service dog.

Official as in?  Paws with a Cause?  Leader Dog?  

[Susan in Maine]

15 minutes ago, Elaine5715 said:

Official as in?  Paws with a Cause?  Leader Dog?  

Is that any of your business?

 

[Elaine5715]

1 hour ago, Susan in Maine said:

Is that any of your business?

 

Why so rude?  I have been a contributor to both for years after a young friend with cerebral palsy needed to raise $25,000 to get his first Paws dog.  He has his third dog now.  https://www.pawswithacause.org/who-we-are/history/  Both Paws with a Cause and Leader Dogs are Michigan based.  Why don't you drop your check in the mail?   https://www.leaderdog.org/

[sanger727]

Agree with looking at the special needs cruising board. The biggest issue is whether or not she needs the dogs in port and whether or not that will be allowed. Alot of countries have pretty strict rules about live animals being brought in an quarantine requirements. The ADA doesn't apply outside the US, so no one has to allow a service dog off the ship. 

[pinto18]

15 hours ago, TreyB said:

Relax Sharon, it’s a public forum and the question was asked. 

I dont think Susans comment was rude. It seems like Elaine was questioning whether the dog was "official"...the OP said he was and that everything was already arranged. I understand there are people that try to bypass the rules, but why assume the OP is? She just doesn't want the share her grand daughters need for a service dog, nor should she have to

[ExpatBride]

1 hour ago, pinto18 said:

I dont think Susans comment was rude. It seems like Elaine was questioning whether the dog was "official"...the OP said he was and that everything was already arranged. I understand there are people that try to bypass the rules, but why assume the OP is? She just doesn't want the share her grand daughters need for a service dog, nor should she have to

 

If it's a legit service dog and everything is in fact arranged, there should be no cause for concern 🤷‍♀️

[bguppies]

6 hours ago, sanger727 said:

Agree with looking at the special needs cruising board. The biggest issue is whether or not she needs the dogs in port and whether or not that will be allowed. Alot of countries have pretty strict rules about live animals being brought in an quarantine requirements. The ADA doesn't apply outside the US, so no one has to allow a service dog off the ship. 

This is the best response and where my research would go to.

 

Depending on which countries/islands their cruise is visiting and whether the little girl with the service dog plans on getting off the ship.and MUST have the dog is a pretty big question.

 

If the animal has proper documentation, getting on and off the ship and around the ship should be no problem.

 

Whether the ports visited allow ther dog off the ship is the biggest question.

 

Would suck to assume since the dog is allowed on the ship, he'll be allowed off in the ports, then leave this poor kid stuck on the shjip, if she wanted to explore the ports.

 

Most ports don't allow you off the ships with fruits or snacks that aren't pre-packaged. So imagine how tight most would be with an animal getting off the ship and interacting with all the stray dogs you see in every port. (would be more likely the service dog might carch something from a stray, but thats not how the countries would see it.)

Edited May 11, 2023 by bguppies

[momof3cruisers]

14 hours ago, sanger727 said:

Agree with looking at the special needs cruising board. The biggest issue is whether or not she needs the dogs in port and whether or not that will be allowed. Alot of countries have pretty strict rules about live animals being brought in a quarantine requirements. The ADA doesn't apply outside the US, so no one has to allow a service dog off the ship. 

In most locations like hotels etc, you can’t leave a service dog in a room unattended and that does include cruise lines. My son is considering going on a cruise with his service dog so we have looked into it. You have to have a variety of paperwork depending on where you are sailing to. In our case, they wouldn’t get off the ship anyway but I’m pretty sure there are ports that require the info even if you stay on the ship. 

[broadwaybaby123]

Although I haven't cruised with them, I do work with a lot of service animals.  She may need to provide proof of licensure as well as proof of vaccinations to Carnival, who will likely keep that information on file and alert the crew onboard.  I'd also carry hard copies of these documents on the cruise in case she's questioned.  When she's on the ship, she will likely need to pack their vests so that people know not to interact with the dog (for those that don't know, if the dog is wearing a red vest, they're a working service animal and the public cannot interact with the dog).

 

I'm not sure about the specific ports, that might be something you would have to look into further, and may even be asked to provide the aforementioned documentation, hence why extra copies might be a good idea.

Edited May 12, 2023 by broadwaybaby123

[ObstructedView2]

Hi @Rick&Jeannie🙂

 

Just dropping you some Carnival information below. I hope you have a terrific sailing & everything goes smoothly.

 

 

 

 

Above info located (Click On Link)

https://www.carnival.com/about-carnival/special-needs/service-dogs

 

 

 

 

 

🐕‍🦺🦮🐕‍🦺  🙂  🐕‍🦺🦮🐕‍🦺

[1kaper]

On 5/10/2023 at 8:39 PM, Elaine5715 said:

The problems are the typical ones.  People want to pet the animal and are used to those with fraud service dogs allowing i

I just got off MSC and a lady had her seeing eye dog on (I assume because of the type of harness it looked like it was used to help guide her). He had a clearly marked harness. While I admired the dog I didn’t approach (much as I wanted to) but I did see other people approach and ask to pet the dog. Her response was that he was working. 
it was interesting to see when her partner arrive she took the harness off so they could greet each other. It was very cute. The. The harness went back on and back to work. 

 

[ibarrio]

The ship isn't the issue, it's the ports as everyone has stated. I'm sorry that traveling is so difficult for people who need service animals. 

[Susan in Maine]

On 5/11/2023 at 12:21 PM, pinto18 said:

I dont think Susans comment was rude. It seems like Elaine was questioning whether the dog was "official"...the OP said he was and that everything was already arranged. I understand there are people that try to bypass the rules, but why assume the OP is? She just doesn't want the share her grand daughters need for a service dog, nor should she have to

Thank you. My point was that it is nobody's business where the dog came from, who trained it, etc. In the US, official 'certificates', formal training documents, etc. are not required for service dogs. 

 

Unfortunately, far too often on these boards, people feel the need to tell whoever is asking the question that they don't know what they are talking about, rather than just answering the question.

[Susan in Maine]

On 5/10/2023 at 11:00 PM, TreyB said:

Pretty sure she’s a miserable person worthy of being dismissed.  Thanks for doing some great work. 

Actually, I'm not. Way way too many people think it's ok to question those with disabilities, trying to get them to justify the accommodations they need. Nobody on this board has a need or right to know how/where the dog was trained. That wasn't the question.

[capsfloyd]

On the Vista there was 6 x 6 pad look like green Astro turf , this was for service dogs , and security dog also .

[trummy]

This is a topic I have been curious about. There are people who have allergies to dogs. Are service animals a danger to those people? Do service dogs have to be the type that are hypoallergenic?

 

I'm not allergic, just curious.

[staceyglow]

1 hour ago, trummy said:

This is a topic I have been curious about. There are people who have allergies to dogs. Are service animals a danger to those people? Do service dogs have to be the type that are hypoallergenic?

 

I'm not allergic, just curious.

I have never seen more than one service dog on a cruise at a time.  I am sure it is reasonably easy to avoid them if you are allergic, just like service dogs on land.

[trummy]

1 hour ago, staceyglow said:

I have never seen more than one service dog on a cruise at a time.  I am sure it is reasonably easy to avoid them if you are allergic, just like service dogs on land.

Thanks, but that doesn't address my questions.