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

[rangeley]

Welcome Back Roz!!!!!:) Alot has happened in the week you were gone. I'm glad you had a great cruise and that Brenny was a hit on the ship, but was there any doubt?? HAHA Hope you didn't get off the ship cuz of the flu :eek:

Cindy

[wizard-of-roz]

Cindy: There was not much talk about the flu, while onboard. We were all too busy having fun!

We did get off the ship in Puerto Vallarta and, had a wonderful time.

The news is not too good for Mexico City, I hope it stays good for the coastal communities, they can really use our dollars and depend on the tourism.

I hope this flu doesn't affect cruising too much! We'll see!

[kerrytens]

Darcie, Glad you went forward and did something about "Ranger Rick". He was an idiot! I hope you were satisfied.

 

I didn't get to tell anyone, but we got a call from CCI on tuesday. Someone had cancelled their interview for Friday and they asked if we could make it on short notice. Lucky for us, John happened to be on school vacation. So off we went. We left Thursday because it's pretty far for us to go and we couldn't do it in one day. We took the ferry from Connecticut to Long Island. Friday we had our interview. Just let me say that we were so impressed with CCI. The facilities are just incredible!! The new campus is just beautiful. The dogs!! I just can't tell you how much we were impressed with them. Not only are they beautiful but the most well behaved dogs we have ever seen. John even commented how they behaved better than Rangeley, and thats alot for John to say. John got to work one of the dogs and you could see his face light up. Of course it was bittersweet for me, but seeing John with the dog was great. Everyone was so nice. After the one on one interview, the trainer gave us the feeling that we will be acceped to the waiting list. Of course this is not official, but we feel good about it. Now it's a 2 to 4 week wait to see if we are accepted. Wish us luck!!

Cindy and John

Cindy, this is awesome news for you and John!! I am so very happy for the two of you. :D:D

I need minute by minute updates please!

 

Miriam

[kerrytens]

Welcome Back Roz!!!!

 

I love Princess too. I'm so happy that they treat Brenny as well as they treat the rest of us folk :D

I would love to hear more of the trip when you have some time.

 

Miriam

[Andar]

Welcome back Roz! Sounds like they got the relief boxes right. I am looking forward to my Princess cruise in Sept. and it will be so nice not to have to worry about that part of it!

 

Sounds tempting for the cruise in Jan. I think we will just wait a bit and see how the flu thing goes.

Edited April 28, 2009 by Andar

[denversees4me]

Hi Roz Brenny and PaPa,

We r bummed we will miss you but will hook up again maybe in June for our next visit !!! OK so im seriously thinking the January cruise too , but want to look into it too so thanks for the info Quam !!!! Roz it would be fun to cruise together i wonder if Amber nad Ricks new baby will be old enough by then ? oh did you know Amber got her new guide dog Hamlett he is so cute he is a goldie boy !!! Rick is on the list for one but wants to wait till baby 2 is born and life is moving along as it should

miss and love you !!!!!

cari and Denver

 

Hi to everyone else !!!!!!!

[dvdfreakmc]

Welcome back, Roz! Can't wait to hear more about your adventures. Great tip on the dog bling. We have tried to have Werin wear some bling on formal night, so that we can give a "signal" that she is a girl rather than a guy. This site is superb. I'm ordering right now.

[DisneyKidsDad]

Jessica did the presentation and Flora the trainer did the personal interview. Both of them were wonderful!

 

 

 

I'm glad you got to meet Jess. She is the best. Hopefully she will be your "dorm mom" when your up there for training. I saw her last week at the abilities expo and was busting her about talking about us during your phone interview. Flora is a great trainer. But all of the trainers are great.

[S.S. Cruisers]

Real quick.

Roz: Welcome back! We missed you and glad you guys had a great cruise! Brenda the hit of the shop? Go figure! :D

Cindy: All I could think of watching John ski was SLOW DOWN! :D He is amazing and don't feel bad for bragging, you have every right to.

NEWS FLASH, we got a new baby girl. She is 2 1/2 months old. She is a terrier mix, but is brown and white. I will post pictures later, have to get ready for work and am not quick at posting pics yet. Her name is Jesabell Lou. We did not name her. She is a rescue girl and cute as a button. She won't be home until Wednesday night or Thursday morning. I know we said no more right now, but they put their darn pictures in the paper every Friday and PaPa said, "Go get her." Well as it ended up, HE went and did the adoption all by himself! Now that is a man after a furbaby.

Anyway, gotta run, will chat later! Everyone have a great day.

Nancy

[wizard-of-roz]

Cari: I'm so happy for Amber and Rick (for all who don't know them; they are a seeing impaired couple, with a beautiful baby son and a baby on the way.) I was fortunate to have dinner with them and Cari and Denver (the amazing seeing-eye-dog.) They're a remarkable couple, to say the least, how they manage their lives is a true testament to the human spirit!

If you're ever feeling sorry for yourself; you just have to meet folks like Cari, Amber and Rick; your life will be enriched and you will see life in a whole different perspective!!!!

Cari, we ALL missed your wonderful input. And, I'm sorry, too, that we'll miss you.

Peter: Everyone always thinks that Brenda is a "boy" because she's so bold and black. Werin looks like a girl more than Brenny does! The "blingy" collars helped to give her some identity. And, they're not so expensive. She has one for every day and for special holidays too! Have fun! Werin will look like a "girly-girl!" Make sure that you buy the extra large ones, they tend to run a bit tight on some of them.

Darcie: Princess: (Allison Muff-Access Compliance & Emergency Response Specialist - Access Line: 661.284.4521 Email: allisonm@princesscruises.com), is the person you want to contact prior to your cruise. I emailed her to let her know how successful both the litter and the location of the box were for Brenda. I gave her huge kudo's on getting it "right!"

Nancy: Congratulations on "Jesabell Lou" (what a handle!) Your DH did a wonderful thing in rescuing this pup. And, how lucky she is to have you both and kitty too!

Miriam: The ship (Sapphire) was absolutely gorgeous! She's in great shape and the crew and staff are some of the best we've been with. They were so accommodating and thoughtful, in every way!

We had some issues with the food, in Horizon Court, one day. Some things were either undercooked and some overcooked. The staff were a bit "pushy" and unfriendly. (They had just had over 650 children on the previous weeks cruise) and, I think they were still reeling from that experience. Still, they needed to take a deep breath and re-examine some of what they were doing. We spoke with the manager and, he was so apologetic (he sent chocolate covered strawberries to our cabin, that evening.)

Princess is of the mind-set that they want your cruise experience to be the "best" and, they want to be the "best" in the industry. I appreciate that! And, could not find fault in any other area.

We stayed on the ship, most of the cruise, except for PV, of which we took a cab ride into town and walked around and shopped a bit and then headed back to the ship.

We've been to the MR many, many times and really go, now, for the cruising experience more than anything else! I know we'll be doing this same venue for many years because of the convenience and the Princess experience.

I love cruising with my Brenda and I highly recommend it to everyone who has not tried crusing with a Service Dog, yet!

[sunshine426]

Roz, Welcome back. I am looking forward to hearing your review(or Brenda's). I also love Princess. Although in all fairness, we can only compare it to Carnival. With the great deals out their now, Mr Sunshine and I keep looking at each other and saying why aren't we booking now! Then we remind ourselves, abt the economy, recent purchases, and tear up those Princess flyers.

 

On a service dog note, I will have two 10 week old puppies home next week for some home puppy love! I am pretty excited, we'll see how I feel at the end of the two weeks when I take them back. It is always interesting to see how new training ideas come about. I've got a new dog play yard for them. Will give them crate experience during the day, exposure to the house hold environment and some limited outings. I'll keep y'all posted.

[wizard-of-roz]

Sunshine: I totally understand about the economy, etc., etc., etc. We all live in it.....however, when Princess offers 2 for 1 cruising to Alaska, it's just way too tempting and who knows when it will come again!

We've cut way back in other areas of our lives.....Looks like the "gift giving" will be a little less "blingy" for a while!!!!

As long as I can cruise, and, as long as there's good deals out there, I'm willing to hold back on other goodies!!!!

Now, to the really important stuff.....the puppies! I wish I could be a fly on the wall in your house. You're going to have so much fun! I just love their big eyes and paws! So cute!

[sunshine426]

I love how enthusiastic and clumsy they are. I'll be in the nursery tomorow with the real babies and mamas. I thought it was going to be the puppies I was most excited to enteract with, but it is turning out to be the mommies. Last week, after feeding and clean up, we were snuggling one of the litters. Mommy was with us, and would check to make sure her babies we ok,then lean on us for pats. I sat down on the floor with one puppy in my lap and her by my side. After a few minutes I handed my puppy off and just patted and stroked the mommy. She was lying on her back, legs extended(not a very lady like pose, that's for sure!)and was super relaxed. She probably needed a break from puppy care. When we left, she was on her side with all of her puppies having a snack. I think she waved good by to me with her eyes:).

[wizard-of-roz]

I love how enthusiastic and clumsy they are. I'll be in the nursery tomorow with the real babies and mamas. I thought it was going to be the puppies I was most excited to enteract with, but it is turning out to be the mommies. Last week, after feeding and clean up, we were snuggling one of the litters. Mommy was with us, and would check to make sure her babies we ok,then lean on us for pats. I sat down on the floor with one puppy in my lap and her by my side. After a few minutes I handed my puppy off and just patted and stroked the mommy. She was lying on her back, legs extended(not a very lady like pose, that's for sure!)and was super relaxed. She probably needed a break from puppy care. When we left, she was on her side with all of her puppies having a snack. I think she waved good by to me with her eyes:).

 

AWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW! So much fun!!!!!!!!! Just think some of those puppies will grow-up to become someone's partner; they will be the one to help them to see horizons they may have never been able to hope for before, and will give them a three dimentional life!

 

I am so grateful to these "mommies" and most of all grateful to people like YOU; who give of themselves to help others!!!!!!

[sunshine426]

If I didn't know better, I would swear that the two mommy dogs were comparing notes. They both were wagging and wiggling and ready for their massage time today. Actually one of the mom dogs was mom to the other, so we had a mom and daughter both mommies. One of course is a very experienced mom, the other is brand new to this. I am sure they miss their families while they are in the nursery, but we all try to give them plenty of love and pats. The puppies are all thriving and getting bigger. Still pretty little.

I have a repeat visitor at the house tonight. She is lying at my feet. She can be hesitant, but if I used a high pitched baby voice, she follows me every where. I'll probably be ready for a dog tini after this visit, at least my family will be for sure. Squeak Squeak.:)

[wizard-of-roz]

Speaking of that "high pitched" voice.....Brenda can be absolutely "on task" doing amazingly well in every aspect of her duties and, then someone will come along and speak to her with that "high pitched baby voice." She turns into "mush", her tail starts wagging as if she's reving-up her motor to take to flight! Her attention to me is nil and she's totally focused on the "high pitched" person!!!!!

It pretty interesting to see how a highly trained and skilled dog can truly lose it!!!!!

Of course, a single command will bring her right back to being "on task".....but, to watch the change in her is so weird!!! :o

[denversees4me]

Hi Roz

Thanks for the kind words about Amber Rick and I ... your too sweet , Im so sad we will miss you but like i said i think i will come back to the valley in June or July so maybe then ....ok so i ALMOST had Dave talked into going to Alaska again and it was the same cruise as your Roz ....GGGRRRrrrrr he almost went for it but then booooooo he said no lets go next year and take 2 weeks instead of 1 he said we could put a deposit down for next year though when princess announces their rates so stay tuned and let me know what your doing roz if youll go alaska again or anyone else for that matter .... it would be fun for all of us to cruise together ...prices to mexico are SOOOOOO cheap right now i found a 3 night on carnival * not my fave line * for 125 dollars can you believe it ?? WOW !!!!! maybe the flu is not such a bad thing book for later and benifit from the flu scare now LOL

im so bad......

well at least i am able to sail this year ... we have a Halloweencruise booked on disney cruise line yippee !!!1 it has become an anual trip and Denver just loves all the characters ... last year i made him a quilt then we gave it to the pursers desk at the start of the cruise when they delivered it to our room the last night of the cruise.... all the characters had signed it its darling and i think i will enter it in the orange county fair this year

night night all going to bed now have a ood weekend everyone and Roz have fun in san franny

[jessiet1]

Fair enough.... thanks for that.

[sunshine426]

Speaking of that "high pitched" voice.....Brenda can be absolutely "on task" doing amazingly well in every aspect of her duties and, then someone will come along and speak to her with that "high pitched baby voice." She turns into "mush", her tail starts wagging as if she's reving-up her motor to take to flight! Her attention to me is nil and she's totally focused on the "high pitched" person!!!!!

 

It pretty interesting to see how a highly trained and skilled dog can truly lose it!!!!!

 

Of course, a single command will bring her right back to being "on task".....but, to watch the change in her is so weird!!! :o

 

My natural voice is soft and young sounding, so it doesn't take much to change it up. I do have that mom voice, stern no nonsense, I mean business voice that also works to capture attention.

 

Each dog works differently. The bold dogs respond more to that no nonsense, let's go type of voice. The young ones need that encourging, yes you can do it, good girl, ..... The timid ones are the ones I break out the squeak for. If they are balking, it tends to get their attention focused on me, and then I can switch it back.

 

This dog has been woofing at a lot of things. The vacuum(not even on) the tv's(not even turned on), the grill on the deck:confused:. I am pretty sure she sees her reflection in the tv and maybe the grill. Not so sure about the vacuum. I needed to use my steam cleaner upstairs and she woofed at it as I was setting up, but wasn't phased at all when I turned it on.

 

I think an outing to best buys is on our agenda. We can walk by the vacuums and all the big tvs.

 

Off to take my own dog to the vet, annual shots, and she is getting her spring itchy skin.

Puppies are coming tomorow evening. I'll let y'all know how that goes. :D

[wizard-of-roz]

My natural voice is soft and young sounding, so it doesn't take much to change it up. I do have that mom voice, stern no nonsense, I mean business voice that also works to capture attention.

 

Each dog works differently. The bold dogs respond more to that no nonsense, let's go type of voice. Yep! This is Brenda!!!! The young ones need that encourging, yes you can do it, good girl, ..... The timid ones are the ones I break out the squeak for. If they are balking, it tends to get their attention focused on me, and then I can switch it back.

 

This dog has been woofing at a lot of things. The vacuum(not even on) the tv's(not even turned on), the grill on the deck:confused:. I am pretty sure she sees her reflection in the tv and maybe the grill. Not so sure about the vacuum. I needed to use my steam cleaner upstairs and she woofed at it as I was setting up, but wasn't phased at all when I turned it on.

 

I think an outing to best buys is on our agenda. We can walk by the vacuums and all the big tvs. Great idea....desensitizing can be the answer to all of the above! What a character!

 

Off to take my own dog to the vet, annual shots, and she is getting her spring itchy skin. Have you tried the Salmon oil in her morning meal? It sure took care of Brenda's dry and itchy skin. She's also getting 50mg of Benadryl in the am and 50mg in the pm......both have made a world of difference in her skin/ears and red eyes!

Puppies are coming tomorow evening. I'll let y'all know how that goes. :D

Please do! :)

[wizard-of-roz]

Fair enough.... thanks for that.

 

What?

[wizard-of-roz]

Hi Roz

Thanks for the kind words about Amber Rick and I ... your too sweet , Im so sad we will miss you but like i said i think i will come back to the valley in June or July so maybe then .... In July we have our re-certification and Graduate Seminar, in Oceanside. It's the weekend of the 18th. Let me know! I'd love to see you all! ok so i ALMOST had Dave talked into going to Alaska again and it was the same cruise as your Roz ....GGGRRRrrrrr he almost went for it but then booooooo he said no lets go next year and take 2 weeks instead of 1 he said we could put a deposit down for next year though when princess announces their rates so stay tuned and let me know what your doing roz if youll go alaska again or anyone else for that matter .... it would be fun for all of us to cruise together ... I'd love that too! We will be going in April, 2010 - either the 10th or 17th. Our yearly trip to Mexico! I can't do shorter than 7 days (too much prep. work!) prices to mexico are SOOOOOO cheap right now i found a 3 night on carnival * not my fave line * for 125 dollars can you believe it ?? WOW !!!!! maybe the flu is not such a bad thing book for later and benifit from the flu scare now LOL

im so bad...... I know what you mean! We'd never wish "bad" on anyone....we just want great cruise deals!

well at least i am able to sail this year ... we have a Halloweencruise booked on disney cruise line yippee !!!1 it has become an anual trip and Denver just loves all the characters ... last year i made him a quilt then we gave it to the pursers desk at the start of the cruise when they delivered it to our room the last night of the cruise.... all the characters had signed it its darling and i think i will enter it in the orange county fair this year Oh! How cute is that! What a great idea!

night night all going to bed now have a ood weekend everyone and Roz have fun in san franny

Thank you! I'll miss not seeing you!

[rangeley]

Nancy, Congrats on your new baby!!! Can't wait to see some pics.

Cindy

[rangeley]

Just to let everyone know..... We are officially accepted to the CCI waiting list!!! WOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO :)

[wizard-of-roz]

Just to let everyone know..... We are officially accepted to the CCI waiting list!!! WOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOOOO :)

 

Cindy and John......Congratulations!!!! Your lives will be so enriched, not only by your new dog partner but by Canine Companions for Independence. They've changed me and my DH forever!!!!!!!!

I'm so excited for you all!!!! Please tell us when you go to Team Training and especially when you graduate!

I'm thrilled for you!!!!!!!!