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

[Caribbean Chris]

9 minutes ago, wizard-of-roz said:

He lays down, gets comfy and rarely sits up, even when the music and lighting gets loud and bright.  I take him to most of the shows and I always arrive in plenty of time to get him safe floor space.  I also bring "caution" tape in my purse and will rope off the area he's laying in, if necessary.  Cindy and John sat right down front with me and Horton.

 

So great that Horty remains calm and comfy. Raylene didn’t much like the Jersey Boys show, but she hung in there.

[wizard-of-roz]

3 hours ago, Caribbean Chris said:

How do you all deal with theater seating with your dog?  I'm glad that cruise ships (and other venues) sometimes set aside seats/rows for people with wheelchairs. I am curious about how well these work out for people in chairs with service dogs. It seems like a lot of those sections are kind of exposed at the back of the theater with a lot of traffic, and I wonder whether the dog gets stepped on when the lights go out by late arrivals. 

 

I am lucky not to have mobility issues yet, so I browse around at daytime events in the theater to find whatever rows may exist that end by a wall or partition with a dog-sized space next to the last seat. If there's a show I want to see, one of us gets there early and heads for the last two seats on that row at the wall end. Often the early-arriving people prefer to take the aisles first, so we can usually score a place at the other end where the dog can settle comfortably without people stepping on him/her. 

 

Here's Raylene at a "Jersey Boys"-type show on Silhouette last week. That little corner created by a curved wall gave her plenty of room with complete protection from other people.

What a wonderful picture of the two of you enjoying your cruise.

[wizard-of-roz]

Just now, Caribbean Chris said:

 

So great that Horty remains calm and comfy. Raylene didn’t much like the Jersey Boys show, but she hung in there.

When Horton first attended shows with me I don't think he liked it much either.  He would be restless, sit up, lay down and move around a lot.  I continuously asked him to lay down, I even gave him a treat to assure him that laying down was a great idea.  Now he just lays down, occasionally looks up at me, I ignore him and then he settles down in a "down/stay" and knows that the noise and lights mean nothing and he doesn't have to be concerned about them.  It's a learning experience for the Service Dog.

 

If going to live shows or the movies is important to you....then, the more you expose your dog to them the easier it will be for him and for you.  Brenda and Horton both took some time to become comfortable in noisy situations with me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[S.S. Cruisers]

OH Chris, 

That looks like a great spot for Raylene.  Glad you guys found it.  

[rangeley]

Oakland did awesome at the show. John was ready to leave just in case he was freaked. But nothing bothers this dog.  3am the fire alarm went off last night and continued for at least 25 minutes. Oak got up repositioned and went back to sleep. I would have had to get dressed and bring Wexler outside. He would have been so freaked. 

 

Roz sorry for all the drool and hair. 🤤

Edited November 27, 2019 by rangeley

[rangeley]

3 hours ago, Caribbean Chris said:

How do you all deal with theater seating with your dog?  I'm glad that cruise ships (and other venues) sometimes set aside seats/rows for people with wheelchairs. I am curious about how well these work out for people in chairs with service dogs. It seems like a lot of those sections are kind of exposed at the back of the theater with a lot of traffic, and I wonder whether the dog gets stepped on when the lights go out by late arrivals. 

 

I am lucky not to have mobility issues yet, so I browse around at daytime events in the theater to find whatever rows may exist that end by a wall or partition with a dog-sized space next to the last seat. If there's a show I want to see, one of us gets there early and heads for the last two seats on that row at the wall end. Often the early-arriving people prefer to take the aisles first, so we can usually score a place at the other end where the dog can settle comfortably without people stepping on him/her. 

 

Here's Raylene at a "Jersey Boys"-type show on Silhouette last week. That little corner created by a curved wall gave her plenty of room with complete protection from other people.

 

Love the way Raylene is looking at you ❤️

[Mavis and Me]

5 hours ago, wizard-of-roz said:

Nothing more fun than watching highly trained Service Dogs act like puppies!

I always feel like people are judging me when my dog acts like ... (gasp!) a DOG!!  It doesn’t stop me from taking her vest off on long days and letting her blow some steam, but it always seems like other people who see her think she’s acting naughty.  I just tell them that she’s not a robot and she’s “on her break”!!

[wizard-of-roz]

32 minutes ago, Mavis and Me said:

I always feel like people are judging me when my dog acts like ... (gasp!) a DOG!!  It doesn’t stop me from taking her vest off on long days and letting her blow some steam, but it always seems like other people who see her think she’s acting naughty.  I just tell them that she’s not a robot and she’s “on her break”!!

I totally understand what you're saying.  I, too, can sometimes get self conscience about my dog's and my behavior.  

 

I have learned since walking with a Service Dog since 2002 that I should trust my decisions and have faith in my skills as a team leader.  I've learned to watch my dog, keep an eye on him at all times, keep an eye on the public and walk tall, with confidence and calmness.

 

It does help to know that I'm not alone and there are wonderful folks out in the world who also live their lives with an amazing 4 legged hero.  

 

Cruising with Cindy and John was so enriching and fulfilling for both me, and I know for my buddy Horton.

[Algebralovr]

20 hours ago, Caribbean Chris said:

 

The thing that always worries me is the dog’s tail sliding out into a place where it could get stepped on. Even in cafe al Baccio (Celebrity’s coffee lounge), I’m constantly checking the tail and making her move.

 

Good point about the loud noise down front. I had a great row for the dog once on HAL overlooking the stage, but as soon as the loud music started blaring, the dog was standing up, shaking her body and wouldn’t settle. So we left. 

 

I hear you on that!
On Solstice last year in May, we had found that right up against the rail overlooking the atrium was a great spot in the afternoon.  I could put Scooter between the glass and my chair, and he was out of the way.     In the dining room, they gave us a 4 top on deck 4 just as we walked in, up against the wall, and he curled up under the table out of the way. 

 

Too bad he HATES flying.  

[wizard-of-roz]

1 hour ago, Algebralovr said:

 

I hear you on that!
On Solstice last year in May, we had found that right up against the rail overlooking the atrium was a great spot in the afternoon.  I could put Scooter between the glass and my chair, and he was out of the way.     In the dining room, they gave us a 4 top on deck 4 just as we walked in, up against the wall, and he curled up under the table out of the way. 

 

Too bad he HATES flying.  

Awwww!  My kind of dog!

[Onagh]

Hello Cruisers & SDs, I am giving you the first public look at my Coral Princess Fiasco. My Travel Agent and Princess have this, and my Travel Agent is meeting (coincidentally) with Director of Sales next Tuesday.

 

Coral Princess 11/2/19 Sailing Panama Canal Full Transit West Bound

 

I have been Cruising for 4 years and 14 Cruises, and have had my Service Dog with me on the past 7 Cruises. I have always had perfect Service, Perfect experience, and incredible assistance and support from Crew in all Departments, for both Princess Cruise & Carnival Cruise Lines.

 

On Embarkation Day (Day 1), I was bombarded with Passengers asking to Pet my Service Dog, despite clearly visible DO NOT PET patch. I spent the entire Embarkation day literally defending myself to complete strangers because I declined to allow anyone to touch my Service Dog. I made excuse after excuse “maybe later in the cruise”, “let him settle in it’s very chaotic”. Passengers called me a ***** for NOT allowing them to touch my Service Dog, and I am called a ***** when I say we are in Close Quarters and as soon as we settle in we WILL SEE if we can be more Social. It did not matter what words came out of my mouth, every Passenger on the Ship knew better.  I excused the lack of Security Presence on the rush of Embarkation. The worst Passenger to accost me on Embarkation Day was a Woman Passenger who approached me on Deck 6 near the Casino to ask if she could Pet my Service Dog. When I said No, Max is Working, she immediately got Hostile and accused me of abusing my Dog. She demanded to know where he “went to the bathroom” and said I was cruel for not allowing Max to “run free”.  This woman continued her assault on my Service Dog and I throughout the Cruise. 

My Room Steward took me to the Litter which was on Deck 10, Forward. I was not provided sufficient Litter, as it was interior and closest exterior was the Forward Bow which was closed daily due to high winds. The Litter was placed in a Crew Access area, so the echo and noise was distracting and unnerving. There were daily orders of chemicals from slightly odorous to overpowering to unable to enter the room. The entire Cruise I spent several hours a day sitting on the floor in the Vault waiting for the noise and activity to quiet down enough for my Service Dog to use the Litter.

On the way back from the Litter, we ran into the Crew Member who presents each Port in the Cruise, Humberto, and he asked if we would be open to introducing a Xoloitzquintli, the National Dog of Mexico, during the Cabo San Lucas Presentation. I said yes and to let me know what when where. Humberto told me he would coordinate with Passenger Services and get back to me.

 

The Muster Drill exit for Disabled Individuals seemed to set the tone of the Cruise, although I passed off the Hostile looks, the physical pushing, and the rude comments as Travel Fatigue and irritation over the Mandatory Safety Drill.  I did not attend Dinner on Embarkation Evening, as I was too tired after travel and the extreme defense of myself and my Service Dog.  We had Room Service instead.  My Room Steward was understanding and accommodating to my fatigue. I do want to make a point that the only Crew Member to show me any empathy or care on the Ship was my Room Steward, Ray (Deck 12 Room 317)

 

Day 2  Sea Day 11/3 Early Morning, the Aggressive Woman who accused me of Animal Cruelty approached me again in front of the International Cafe on Deck 6 while I was placing an order.  My Service Dog emitted  a low vocal alert accompanied by a physical Block with Body Touch. She interrupted my Order with the Staff at the Counter to ask again if she could pet my Service Dog and I deflected by telling her we needed to move away of the other Passengers waiting in Line. Please Note, this Woman made no Order, she was there solely to attempt interaction with my Service Dog. As I turned to leave the counter with my Service Dog, the Woman was to my Right, as I turned to the Left, I felt the Hands-Free Body Tether (leash) pull tight. When I turned to correct my Service Dog, this woman had the Tether in her hands and was pulling my Service Dog to her by the Leash. She didn’t realize we use a Full Body Tether as recommended by EVERY licensed Service Dog Training Program for Disabled Veterans. I said “Excuse me”, and when I looked around, all the people in line and the Staff at the Counter were in Shock, some passengers made audible sounds. She became very embarrassed, defiant, and rambled about her Dead Dog. This Woman continued to Stalk my Service Dog and I throughout the entire Cruise. Every single day that I attempted to enjoy Lido Deck (14), Sun Deck (15). When I was in the Churchill Cigar Lounge on Deck 7, she would stalk the room, peering at us through the Interior Windows.

 

I spent the majority of Day 2 in the Lotus Spa receiving Services 10a-4pm. I was informed I had scheduled 3 services and was entitled to Discounts, and asked if I could use the Spa Pass to Steam my Hairless Service Dog’s Skin, as I exclusively use Elemis products to keep both our Skin in the best condition. I was told yes by the Spa Manager and purchased the Thermal Suite Pass for the entire Cruise. I was too tired & relaxed from the Spa to dress for Dinner so I again ordered Room Service, and again Ray was compassionate and caring..

 

Day 3 Sea Day 11/4 of the Cruise early morning, the same crazy woman walked past us on Deck 7 Forward Starboard side, I barely saw her in my peripheral, but my Service Dog saw her and immediately became terrified, dropped into a down position and lost his urine.  I need to point out he emptied his bladder at the Litter just 15 minutes prior to this event. My Service Dog was not only fearful of this woman’s constant approaching us, but terrified she was taking him from me after the Leash Drama the day before.

I again spent the entire day, 10a-3p in the Lotus Spa receiving Services. I went to my room to nap until Dinner. This was the first night I went to the Bordeaux DR. I was seated in a secluded area alone with plenty of room for my Service Dog to be under the table away from any walking paths. Upon ordering, my waiter asked if I wanted to order anything for my Service Dog. I was very surprised and told him it is against the rules for Service Dogs to eat in the Dining Room. My waiter indicated the empty area I was in, and said it was not a problem, “it’s perfectly fine” he said. From that night forward, I was seated in a secluded area, or a table off set from other Passengers, and every Waiter I sat with in Bordeaux asked for my Service Dog order without prompt or request. 

 

Days 4 & 5, 11/5-6 were Port and Canal Transit Days

 

Day 6 11/7 Panama City - I received authorization to Disembark and spent the day exploring the City. When I returned to the Cruise Terminal, it took 3 attempts to enter the Terminal to re-board the Ship. The first 2 doors I tried to enter I was told No Dogs, and forcibly pushed out. The 3rd door, I was told again I could not enter to Board the Ship and I became frightened that I would not be allowed to get back on the Ship. I started having a Panic attack, and decided to ignore everyone and just go, I would let Panama Authorities arrest me and then use my Passport and Citizenship to get to the US Embassy to get back home. The Terminal Security and the Employees made a scene yelling at me and trying to stop me from reaching the Ship. I had 2 security people chasing me to the Ship, and 2 more Security personnel headed directly towards me from the direction of the Tender Pier. Finally, a Coral Princess Crew Member (Security?) stepped into the Terminal, yelled something in Spanish, and all the Security Personnel backed away from me. 

 

Day 7 Sea Day 11/8 We began in the Morning on Deck 5 in front of Passenger Services. There was no one on the Port side of the Atrium, standing at the ground floor railing when a woman walked behind me. She veered her trajectory from the left side of the are to the right where I was standing. As she walked by, she intentionally used her body to push me forward into the railing, her shoulder to knock my Purse off my shoulder, and her feet made contact with my Service Dog. She never turned her head or acknowledged her aggressive physicality until she entered the Glass Elevators, when she turned around, looked at me, and gave me a creepy, nasty grin as the elevator rose.

That night in the Bordeaux Dining Room, the Maitre D pulled me aside and told me it was against the rules to allow the dog to eat in the dining room (Really? You don’t say?). I immediately realized the Waiters would be punished if I said ANYTHING and took the hit. Please refer to Day 3 of the Cruise!

 

Days 8 through Day 12, 11/9-10-11-12-13 - Every single day I and my Service Dog had been physically & aggressively touched, pushed, shoved, kicked, and tripped on the Ship in view of Crew. 

*On Day 8, a port day, the Ship was virtually empty and I went to the upper deck of the Lotus Pool to be away from people, give my Service Dog some exercise tossing a small ball around.  Please note, there is NOTHING on the upper deck except Chairs and Ping Pong Tables, and our exercise time was only 30 minutes. Unbelievably, a man walked up to the top deck as we were active. It was so vacant in Lotus Pool only the Bar Tender was present downstairs. This Passenger walked up the stairs, got to the top, turned and looked at us, then walked back down. I have yet another Stalker, as I had previously seen him staring at me through the Churchill Lounge Windows. 

 

*Day 9 was another Port Day so this time I went to Deck 15 Starboard Forward and found the upper decks completely vacant. Again I gave my Service Dog a 30 minutes of exercise and again within just a few minutes being alone, another man walks by and stands behind a glass partition and just glares at me shaking his head and appeared agitated. 

 

*By Day 10, the number of Hostile Aggressive Passengers physically harming us on the Ship was taking it’s toll both on my Health and my Service Dogs body. In the late Morning on Deck 7 in front of the International Cafe, a man came up behind us. My Service Dog watched as I ordered. When I turned around, a fully grown Man in his late 40’s early 50’s was down on all fours crawling on the Floor and “barking” at my Service Dog. We both freaked out and ran away, because clearly the man was not properly medicated. Any possibility of either of us keeping it together in this environment was Overboard, floating off into the Pacific. 

Every time my Service Dog saw a Passenger who physically pushed, shoved, tripped, or kicked us, he would cower in fear and lose his urine. It took 2 instances of this behavior and recognizing at least one of the Passengers who harmed us that I understood just how Violent the Coral Princess Passengers were and how unsafe I was on the Ship. 

A man who had previously intentionally tripped me on Lido Deck as we were walking to the Spa, and then looked at me and grinned like a Bully on Day 3, walked by us and my service dog let off a loud bark Alert and attempted to pull me away from the direction the man was coming. I overheard someone say “that dog is untrained” and that’s when I realized we were not safe anywhere on the ship except my Balcony Cabin. A Passenger I made friends with, Noreen, asked me in the Churchill Lounge if my Service Dog was ok, because she heard someone complaining about him because he was barking earlier. I informed Noreen what had been happening and she was stunned, and made the assumption it was Non-Americans who don’t understand Service Dogs. I was brutally honest and told Noreen every person who has physically assaulted us was in fact American. Through chatting with Noreen, I determined any alert my Service Dog gave, from Crowd Avoidance, Medication Reminder, Eating Intervals, or Physiological Changes was gossiped about among Passengers as Aggression.  On Day 12 I went back to Lotus Pool and Spa for relaxation and apply oils to my Service Dog. The Crazy Woman was back, this time she interrupted us as I was rubbing oils into my Service Dogs legs.I tried to deflect again to focus on Elemis.

 

*Day 11 

My Cabin Mate is Platinum on Princess, and I am Ruby, therefore he was invited to the Captain’s Circle and would only go if I went with him. It was the biggest mistake I have ever made! As we got closer to the Doors of the Aft Theater, the crowd was too large for me and told my cabin mate I couldn’t do it. He went to the front of the line to see how long it would be and while he was gone, no matter how I positioned myself or my Service Dog, people intentionally stepped on my feet, my Service Dogs feet, or literally pushed me as they walked by. M cabin mate came back, said he scoped out a good table by the door no body wants, and held my hand in the crowd.  We sat in the last row to the left of the entrance door at the first table because the Crowd made me nervous. But I thought we were safe because we were well out of the walk way, he was under the table next to my feet and tucked in.  Every single person who entered the Theater turned to the Left, walked over to our table and at least 3 men and 2 women literally walked right up on my Service Dog like a Tracker Beam was pulling them. As soon as they got close enough every person made an attempt to kick me or kick my Service Dog. Only after the 5th Violent Passenger kicked us that I pulled my 50lb Service Dog off the floor and put him onto the bench between my Cabin Mate and I that ANY OFFICERS TOOK NOTICE! Every single Officer at the door watched the Passengers laser beam to the dog, step or kick us and then move on and DID NOTHING! And it was obvious what was happening, these Passengers didn’t even try to hide it, most of them tripped over the cocktail table in front of us they were so focused on making physical contact with me or my Service Dog WITH MALICE! And the Officers, including the Captain DID NOTHING!

On the way out of the Theater, a Couple was walking in front of us and she was also wearing a Blue Lace Gown, similar to my Blue Lace Cocktail Dress. When I complimented her on the Dress, her husband whirled around and began screaming at me to “Get that fucking dog off me!”, we were 4-6ft behind him. He stopped and continued to scream at me, and every time I tried to walk around him, he side stepped in front of me. My Cabin Mate told him to move on, keep walking. The man became enraged even more, and took a swing at my Cabin Mate in an attempt to punch him. The aggressive Hostility had now spread beyond just me and to my Cabin Mate. Now my entire Travel Party is being physically assaulted on the ship. 

As soon as the man took the swing I lost it, I started to cry and then the Rage hit. I screamed at him if he wanted to hit someone I dared him to hit me. He called me a *****, he called me a Slut, and I replied that if he wanted to F*ck with Gus he had to go through me. We both started to yell for Security and I began to cry again. I had now experienced 12 consecutive days of Physical Escalating Violence and there wasn’t a Security Officer to found. Even there on Deck 7, when we yelled for Security, it was the Bordeaux Maitre D who responded, not a single Security Officer.

 

*Day 12, the day before Cabo San Lucas Port, Humberto let me know in the early morning that all was coordinated for a 12p Presentation in the Princess Theater.

The hostility continued with Passengers angry that I wasn’t letting my Service Dog interact with anyone save a few select individuals who were kind to us… all were Cigar/Cigarette Smokers who gathered daily in the Churchill Lounge. We spent the majority of the day in our Cabin, the Churchill Lounge, the Litter and one visit to Deck 15. he Cabo Presentation goes well, we did our part and left the theater afterwards. As we exited several people attempted to either block us from leaving bumped into us intentionally or whispered ***** as I walked by.

I stopped in Churchill to visit and smoke, and that’s when another woman came to me and told me everyone in the Theater was saying nasty things, complaining about the dog, complaining about me, and generally degrading comments about me. So now I discover that all the Hostile Nasty Aggressive Passengers are now in the Princess Theater.

When I got back to my cabin there was a note from Passenger Services. When I arrived at the appointed time, the tone with the Customer Services Director was apologetic. I informed her the Cruise was not relaxing. I told her I spent $1,800 in Lotus Spa, and showed her the effects of the Stress from daily assault from Embarkation Day to Day 13 rendered my Eye Treatment & Facial completely wasted. I related the daily assaults, the crazy woman trying to steal my Service Dog, the Man who got on all fours and barked at my Service Dog, and that the Hostility & Aggression & Assault was escalating every single day. I informed her I would not even leave my Balcony Cabin if my Cabin Mate and I were allowed to smoke cigars and cigarettes on our Balcony we would have no need to leave the Cabin.

 

The Customer Services Director informed me she reported me to Corporate and I no longer had approval for my Service Dog to board the Star Princess 15 day to Hawaii 11/19. I then told the Customer Services Director that I can not travel without my Service Dog, and if I can not board with my Service Dog, would cancel all of my 4 next Cruises with Princess, 3 of them fully paid, all of the Cruises were fully insured and Princess was causing a cancelation for Medical Reason. It would be the equivalent of telling a Paraplegic they can not board a Princess ship with their Wheel Chair. She then told me *I* should have come to her on the first day and requested an entry in the Patter… ??? Excuse me? So I just learn after 12 days of hostility aggression and Passengers putting their hands and feet on both myself and my Service Dog, with just 4 days left on the Cruise NOW I find out Administration dropped the ball on Day 1 and I had no idea!

 

When I got back to my Cabin and went out to the Balcony, a Passenger in a close by Balcony Cabin was smoking on their Balcony. The smoke was hitting the over hang which is Deck 14 and blowing back down onto the Deck 12 & 11 Balconies on the Starboard side of the ship. I was furious that I had literally just told the Customer Services Director that smoking on the balcony would have alleviated the daily Physical Assault. I called Passenger Services and reported the smoking, telling the Crew Member that if I and my Cabin Mate are not allowed to smoke Cigars/Cigarettes on the Balcony, then no one else should be able to, and if they were now allowing smoking I wanted it in writing so my Cabin Mate and I would be much happier. Obviously I was told someone was violating the rules.

 

Day 13 - Cabo San Lucas, I disembarked and immediately purchased Valium to control my illness, calm my nerves and try to calm down after 13 consecutive days of Physical Assault. Upon Re-Boarding the Ship, I remained in my Cabin, only smoked in the Churchill Lounge, and had dinner in my room.  

 

Day 14 & 15 Sea Days and return to SFO - I again remained in my Cabin the majority of the Day, only smoked in the Churchill Lounge and had Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner in my Room. The Customer Services Director got back to me. At noon  on Day 14, after not hearing from anyone about the next 4 cruises, I reached out to the Customer Services Director and was informed she Transferred off the Ship in Cabo, and the new Customer Services Director was just beginning his shift. I explained I required an answer regarding Corporate, the Star, and the next 3 cruises after that.  I informed my Travel Agent what happened and on Saturday, Day 15, with no reply no response from the new Customer Services Director, she cancelled all the paid cruises with Princess. 

 

This has been a HORRIFIC cruise and I have NEVER experienced the threat to my physical being on any other CCL Holdings Ship. I can assure you I won’t be sailing Princess again. Ever. I have previously sailed on the Coral’s sister Ship Island Princess and have long lasting friendships from that Cruise. Same with Star Princess, also amazing long lasting Friendships. The Coral Princess has to be the absolute WORST ship I have sailed from an Administrative aspect. I certainly will not take a chance that the Princess Passenger Demographic has significantly changed for the worse, and has become incredibly Violent on the Ship with zero Security Presence.

 

[lindaler]

That is a frightening story.  I too have a Xolo as my service dog. I am so sorry such things happened. I have experienced a few problems such as men barking at the dog but not the physical attacks other then ones I attributed to being inattentive passengers. I felt your fears as you related your story. I have a long b2b cruise planned with family and now I am questioning the wisdom of such a journey. Just wow. 

[Onagh]

2 hours ago, lindaler said:

That is a frightening story.  I too have a Xolo as my service dog. I am so sorry such things happened. I have experienced a few problems such as men barking at the dog but not the physical attacks other then ones I attributed to being inattentive passengers. I felt your fears as you related your story. I have a long b2b cruise planned with family and now I am questioning the wisdom of such a journey. Just wow. 

 

Dont reconsider, I am taking a different approach with my Carnival Cruise in december. 

I am asking that both Purser, Security, and customer Service Director informed at Terminal Check In we are aboard, we require staff to remind Passengers not to interfere with his job, and any crazy wacky people be handled directly by Security.i am also insisting a well ventilated Litter on an outside deck.

 

[wizard-of-roz]

The best part of my most recent cruise on board the Royal Princess on November 9th, were my fellow passengers.  They were respectful, nice, friendly and extremely well behaved in Horton's presence.  People miss their pets at home more than they miss other family members or friends.

 

I wouldn't want to spend my expensive cruise in my cabin or a smoke filled room.

 

I wish you better days ahead!

[wizard-of-roz]

Happy Thanksgiving to all the folks on this forum and your families. 🦃

[wizard-of-roz]

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We are having some very cold and wet weather here in L.A.  I hope you're staying warm and especially remembering to bring the dogs indoors.

 

Believe it or not we're getting ready for our upcoming cruise to Alaska......Brrrrrrr!  I know Cindy, John and Oakland are preparing for their Caribbean cruise in January.  I'm still having some inner ear issues from my last cruise.    Have any of you ever suffered with extended feelings of dizziness after cruising?

[Judie]

Yes!  No dizziness on ship, but I was going side to side In hallways after a cruise years ago,   That was before stabilizers were common.  

[Caribbean Chris]

15 hours ago, wizard-of-roz said:

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We are having some very cold and wet weather here in L.A.  I hope you're staying warm and especially remembering to bring the dogs indoors.

 

Believe it or not we're getting ready for our upcoming cruise to Alaska......Brrrrrrr!  I know Cindy, John and Oakland are preparing for their Caribbean cruise in January.  I'm still having some inner ear issues from my last cruise.    Have any of you ever suffered with extended feelings of dizziness after cruising?

 

Oh dear! No, I never have but read an article recently that it is a fairly common experience.

[HenryKisor]

It's a neurological echo that goes away after a while. After a cruise my legs "thrum" to the cadence of the ship's engines for about five or six days. Same after a two-day, two-night train trip. I've heard some people are so bothered by the phenomenon tey never want to travel by ship or train again.

 

I also find myself walking spraddle-legged like a sailor for a day or two after a cruise.

 

[wizard-of-roz]

It's so weird!  Definitely new for me.  It's worse when I'm standing at the kitchen or bathroom sink and turn on the water.  I start to sway.  Taking a shower is a "hold onto the walls" full experience.  I am now having vertigo with dizziness. 

 

I spoke to the nurse in my doctor's office and she said that I'm lucky that I'm not suffering with the usual accompanying nausea.  The doctor started me on some Meclizine to see if that helps. 

 

With all that medical science has accomplished, I'm afraid the inner ear and all that it entails is still a conundrum to doctors!

 

 

[allies_daphne]

On 11/22/2019 at 9:13 AM, Miki_moto said:

 

Watching this with interest.  Our Panama Canal Cruise stops in many places but Jamaica seems to require the most prep.  

 

Question - should I do all the required testing if I’m not getting off the ship?

 

 

On 11/20/2019 at 12:22 PM, Wendsong said:

Jazz has been trained to move "forward" and can go through the metal detectors without his leash, but I haven't been asked to remove his leash. He sits down on the other side and waits for me (usually, sometimes he comes back!). I send the harness through the x-ray machine because it has heavy metal rings on it. One time they did search me, but usually they just swipe my hands for powder. It does sound as if they were retaliating for refusing to follow an "order" to take off her leash. They have no idea how tiring it is traveling with a SD. They seem to think we do it as a lark!

We were also recently asked to do this at Bergstrom International Airport in Austin, Texas.  My daughter is on the Autism Spectrum and he is tethered to her at all times.  We originally used an around the waist jogging leash, but now use an over the shoulder that frees up her hands more.  Every other airport we have been in let’s them walk through together and then they are both wanded, as the metal rings on his vest set off the scanner.  My older daughter goes through first, then my daughter and SD, and I go last.  Austin was insistent they be separated, and I said no, you cannot require that - it’s his job to be attached to her.  They wanted us to take the sheepskin liner off the belly strap of his vest, and really felt under every inch of the vest. When I tried to explain the process we had experienced in other airports, I was told by the TSA agent that they don’t see many dogs.  Ironically, we had FIVE dogs on our flight - 2 SD’s, and 3 small dogs who were barking and actually sitting in chairs in the terminal.  

[allies_daphne]

On 11/18/2019 at 8:44 AM, rangeley said:

 

I always keep the dog at the table while John gets someone to help him with his food. I doubt Oakland would stay by himself. 

We have an over the shoulder leash my daughter uses, and it has helped a lot with buffets, as it frees up both of her hands.  Since she has a cognitive deficit, she isn’t always quick to correct her SD, so my older daughter and I have to correct at times - because of that, we would not leave him at a table to go through a buffet, especially not a cruise buffet.  He does really well, and walks to her left without issue.  He’s a smaller build field lab, 51 lbs, so not at the level of the buffet.  As another poster said, we also have occasions where he eats food that has been dropped, or is on the floor under a table that we don’t see.  He’s a smart boy 😀.  

[rangeley]

On 12/2/2019 at 4:59 PM, wizard-of-roz said:

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We are having some very cold and wet weather here in L.A.  I hope you're staying warm and especially remembering to bring the dogs indoors.

 

Believe it or not we're getting ready for our upcoming cruise to Alaska......Brrrrrrr!  I know Cindy, John and Oakland are preparing for their Caribbean cruise in January.  I'm still having some inner ear issues from my last cruise.    Have any of you ever suffered with extended feelings of dizziness after cruising?

 

Sorry to hear your dizzy. I've never experienced that before. 

 

Seems like we just got off a cruise and we're right back on. I've got all our clothes piled up to shove back in the suitcase. Ugh  Not sure I'm ready for this. 

 

We just got an email from HAL for all the dog stuff. They want us to do paperwork for all the places we are stopping whether getting off or not. Not gonna happen. Already faxed the Bahamas permit and maybe doing Amber cove, but not doing Grand Turk. They actually sent a link for each island and the requirements, which I thought was nice. Of course they want all the info now. Lol  Haven't they learned they will not get it til the week of the cruise. 

 

We got around 10" of snow. In the 40s today so maybe some melting going on. 

[Caribbean Chris]

3 hours ago, rangeley said:

We just got an email from HAL for all the dog stuff. They want us to do paperwork for all the places we are stopping whether getting off or not. Not gonna happen. Already faxed the Bahamas permit and maybe doing Amber cove, but not doing Grand Turk. They actually sent a link for each island and the requirements, which I thought was nice. Of course they want all the info now. Lol  Haven't they learned they will not get it til the week of the cruise. 

 

We got a similar statement from HAL about our March cruise: 

"Even if you do not intend to disembark the vessel in one or more ports we encourage you to have it as their customs agents will be on board and may ask to see the paperwork."

 

Some countries really don't want dogs entering anyway, so who is going to jump through hoops and pay application fees when they make it almost impossible?  Like St. Kitts - TWO blood titers? Hundreds of dollars just to go ashore for a few hours? Not happening. 

 

On our next cruise we only have two places - Hawaii and Mexico - and the blood titer is done, thank goodness. 

[rangeley]

6 minutes ago, Caribbean Chris said:

 

We got a similar statement from HAL about our March cruise: 

"Even if you do not intend to disembark the vessel in one or more ports we encourage you to have it as their customs agents will be on board and may ask to see the paperwork."

 

Some countries really don't want dogs entering anyway, so who is going to jump through hoops and pay application fees when they make it almost impossible?  Like St. Kitts - TWO blood titers? Hundreds of dollars just to go ashore for a few hours? Not happening. 

 

On our next cruise we only have two places - Hawaii and Mexico - and the blood titer is done, thank goodness. 

 

We just got the Bahamas permit back. Not doing Turks, they want money and there's tons of dogs running around. We've sat on the balcony and watched them scrunge for food from tourists. Going to try to get the Amber Cove Dominican permit. They have their own permit to fill out. They require USDA signatures but will accept digital one. It seems our vet does this? Anyone know about it?