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

[wizard-of-roz]

1 hour ago, allies_daphne said:

Is it weird for me to say it’s comforting to know that other folks SD’s get distracted at times?  Since my daughter has cognitive deficits, she isn’t always focused on whether HE is focused or not.  Sometimes she can be stationary, in her own little world for hours.  As the family member responsible for them I feel a huge amount of pressure for him to ‘behave’ and set a good service dog example, and sometimes I feel like one small lapse in that setting will reflect badly on the SD community. 
 

That being said, in 2 years, I can count on one hand the number of times he had difficulty refocusing, and even then, he wasn’t acting up. 
 

I will also say that on the rare occasion that I had to take him to the potty box on the cruise, he’s definitely a little out of sync with my stride compared to my daughters, as well as being separated from her.  He doesn’t act up, but seems to saying ‘what the heck??’  
 

I’m so thankful to have found this group!

Not weird at all.  I totally get what you're saying.  Sometimes I just love it when Horton acts like the "puppy" that he is.  Just playful, loving and silly!  

 

And, when I watch Horton being walked with someone else it blows me away how differently he strides along than when he's walking with me.  It actually makes me tear-up to realize how he slows himself down for me!

 

These dogs are just plain genius when it comes to partnering with their handlers.

Edited December 19, 2019 by wizard-of-roz

[wizard-of-roz]

12 minutes ago, rangeley said:

 

I think it's the training. Our CCI insists when you are stopped that the dog sit. I don't know if its because John is in a wheelchair or not. 

 

Horton is so well behaved and knows Rozs every move. You can tell they have been a team for a long time. Oakland on the other hand is young and easily distracted. John and him are still working to get in sync. But they have only been a team for 8 months. 

Watching you and John with Oakland was absolutely beautiful.  He looks like he's been with you guys forever.  He's such a good listener and so focused on both of you.  You guys are a wonderful team.  

 

I loved it when Oakland would revert to being a "puppy" and would come up from under our dinner table to get a pat and kiss from Auntie Roz.  I miss you all!

 

You and John are such good handlers, filled with so much love and kindness for our dogs.........Oakland's so lucky to have you both!!!!!

Edited December 19, 2019 by wizard-of-roz

[rangeley]

1 hour ago, wizard-of-roz said:

Watching you and John with Oakland was absolutely beautiful.  He looks like he's been with you guys forever.  He's such a good listener and so focused on both of you.  You guys are a wonderful team.  

 

I loved it when Oakland would revert to being a "puppy" and would come up from under our dinner table to get a pat and kiss from Auntie Roz.  I miss you all!

 

You and John are such good handlers, filled with so much love and kindness for our dogs.........Oakland's so lucky to have you both!!!!!

 

I love when Oakland gets silly. I loved that Horty and him got along so well. They showed everyone how service dogs behave.

 

Thanks for your kind words. I'm sure the old geezer will love to hear this. (His birthday is today, he's 65!! Yikes 😯) 

 

Oleander misses his Auntie Roz! 😉

[wizard-of-roz]

2 hours ago, rangeley said:

 

I love when Oakland gets silly. I loved that Horty and him got along so well. They showed everyone how service dogs behave.

 

Thanks for your kind words. I'm sure the old geezer will love to hear this. (His birthday is today, he's 65!! Yikes 😯) 

 

Oleander misses his Auntie Roz! 😉

🎈HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JOHN BOY!!!!!!🎈  May you have a year filled with love, kindness and laughter 💖  All our Love, Roz and Horton.

[wizard-of-roz]

20 hours ago, rangeley said:

 

I love when Oakland gets silly. I loved that Horty and him got along so well. They showed everyone how service dogs behave.

 

Thanks for your kind words. I'm sure the old geezer will love to hear this. (His birthday is today, he's 65!! Yikes 😯) 

 

Oleander misses his Auntie Roz! 😉

Oh! No!  Now everyone knows what Auntie Roz called her little blonde doggie......."Oleander" that's my boy!  Have fun next week.......your first Christmas with your new Mom and Dad.....You're a lucky boy Oleander, Horty and I miss your little marshmellow nose!

[wizard-of-roz]

Happy Weekend Everyone!  

 

Have a wonderful, happy, joyful and mostly healthy Holdiay.  I wish you all many cruises in your future! 💖

[rangeley]

2 minutes ago, wizard-of-roz said:

Oh! No!  Now everyone knows what Auntie Roz called her little blonde doggie......."Oleander" that's my boy!  Have fun next week.......your first Christmas with your new Mom and Dad.....You're a lucky boy Oleander, Horty and I miss your little marshmellow nose!

 

Haha  I spilled your secret! As I was reading this, drool was pouring off his face ☹️

2 minutes ago, wizard-of-roz said:

 

 

[wizard-of-roz]

1 minute ago, rangeley said:

 

Haha  I spilled your secret! As I was reading this, drool was pouring off his face ☹️

 

OMG!  How can I forget the drool EVERYWHERE!  Truly folks if you've never seen a dog drool constantly then you have not met Oakland.  He forever had a wet mouth. 

 

This is something that can not be trained out of the dog.  You just have to hope that he does it less as he ages.  He comes over and "slimes" your pants, shoes, and anything else in his path.  He would leave a slime across Horton's head or back when he would play or lay with him.  We were all forever wiping ourselves and Horton down before we went to dinner or would go anywhere. 

 

It's like that kid who drools all over himself and you're always putting a bib on him. 

 

It's a good thing he's a handsome charmer! 😘 

[rangeley]

6 hours ago, wizard-of-roz said:

OMG!  How can I forget the drool EVERYWHERE!  Truly folks if you've never seen a dog drool constantly then you have not met Oakland.  He forever had a wet mouth. 

 

This is something that can not be trained out of the dog.  You just have to hope that he does it less as he ages.  He comes over and "slimes" your pants, shoes, and anything else in his path.  He would leave a slime across Horton's head or back when he would play or lay with him.  We were all forever wiping ourselves and Horton down before we went to dinner or would go anywhere. 

 

It's like that kid who drools all over himself and you're always putting a bib on him. 

 

It's a good thing he's a handsome charmer! 😘 

 

Haha  I warned you! I remembered he drooled on your shoe. He is a messy one. I'm always ready with a drool rag. 

[wizard-of-roz]

3 hours ago, rangeley said:

 

Haha  I warned you! I remembered he drooled on your shoe. He is a messy one. I'm always ready with a drool rag. 

I'll take Oleander's drool any day, if it meant we could all cruise together again!

[S.S. Cruisers]

You guys all warm my heart. I look at my sweet Rocky laying next to mom (He is definitely a momma's boy) and wish he could meet his cousins Horty and Oakie. He is getting better and better behaved every day. Still a few areas to work on.  He has a BIG mouth and likes to talk, sometimes non-stop.  We have tried everything.  He got neutered a week ago Friday.  Had them check him for Hip Displaysia (sp), had a couple of different people mention it when he runs.  All was good on his x-rays.  Dr. just thinks he has some peculiar habits.  When he stands on his hind legs, his left foot noticeably turns out to the left.  He rests on his honches when he has to poo.  Just some things I was worried about after the people mentioned it to me.  So thankful our big ole goofy boy is all good.  He weighed in at 60 lbs at  6 months old. His hair is getting lighter and lighter by the day.  He has a patch of silver hairs coming in on his tail.  I thought he got into something, but "NO mom, I was a good boy, its my silver hairs taking over."  In the sunlit he is gorgeous if I might say so myself.  Sorry I took over the post and spewed about my handsome boy!  Should post the most recent picture of him.  Will have to load them from my phone or just log into facebook from my phone.  I shall work on that.  

[S.S. Cruisers]

Here Rocky is, looking over the wall and being the neighborhood snoop!  He loves to stand up there and watch what is going on, on his street!  

[wizard-of-roz]

4 hours ago, S.S. Cruisers said:

Here Rocky is, looking over the wall and being the neighborhood snoop!  He loves to stand up there and watch what is going on, on his street!  

Oh!  Nancy!  What a handsome, big boy, that's for sure and a busy body.  I can certainly see that he's full of fun.  Enjoy him, the time is going so fast.

 

He would have loved playing with Horty and Oakland, they would have shown this youngster what grown-up fun really looks like.  They sure had Cindy and me laughing a lot.  We also got the ship's officer's and other passengers involved in our escapades.

 

Cindy and I lend new meaning to the following couples;  Laverne & Shirley, Thelma & Louise or Lucy & Ethel.  They couldn't hold a candle to the fun we were having!!!! 🥴

[Wendsong]

On 10/31/2019 at 1:20 PM, lindaler said:

I’m so discouraged by all of these negative people. I was so glad the other thread had dropped to page eight. I wish people would just get along.

What is HAL?

[GUT2407]

7 minutes ago, Wendsong said:

What is HAL?

Holland America Line

[Caribbean Chris]

Nancy, Rocky is just beautiful!

[Caribbean Chris]

On 12/20/2019 at 10:37 PM, rangeley said:

 

Haha  I warned you! I remembered he drooled on your shoe. He is a messy one. I'm always ready with a drool rag. 

 

Raylene drooled a lot when she was young, too! On cruises, I always carried a purse nice enough for evening with two side pockets, big enough to hold reward treats on one side and my drool rag on the others!

 

Just threw that falling apart-purse away last month after a LOT of good use. She doesn’t do it so much now - mostly on long walks around the neighborhood when I reward her for stopping, sitting, and staying without being reminded when we reach an intersection, before I give  her the signal to cross the street. She knows I have those treats in my pocket and the anticipation gets that drool going!

[rangeley]

On 12/21/2019 at 1:47 AM, wizard-of-roz said:

I'll take Oleander's drool any day, if it meant we could all cruise together again!

 

Me too!! 

[rangeley]

20 hours ago, S.S. Cruisers said:

Here Rocky is, looking over the wall and being the neighborhood snoop!  He loves to stand up there and watch what is going on, on his street!  

 

Oh Nancy he's a keeper. I'm shocked he's 60lbs already!!! Oakland is around that at 3yrs old. I think Rocky is going to be a big boy!!! Glad things are going better with him. He's growing up! 

[rangeley]

5 hours ago, Caribbean Chris said:

 

Raylene drooled a lot when she was young, too! On cruises, I always carried a purse nice enough for evening with two side pockets, big enough to hold reward treats on one side and my drool rag on the others!

 

Just threw that falling apart-purse away last month after a LOT of good use. She doesn’t do it so much now - mostly on long walks around the neighborhood when I reward her for stopping, sitting, and staying without being reminded when we reach an intersection, before I give  her the signal to cross the street. She knows I have those treats in my pocket and the anticipation gets that drool going!

You mean there's hope he will grow out of this? I never gave that a thought. Yippee!! 

[rangeley]

Yesterday my son and his wife came up for our Christmas together. We had a great day. As many of you know, I have the grandpuppy from hell. Oakland and him only met once for a very short time and it didn't go well. I was anticipating that Forrey (Forrest), as I call him, would spend the day in his kennel. Well I was wrong. The two of them had a ball! Besides some humping, they got along great. They played til they couldn't play no more. It was great. Don't get me wrong, Forrey had a few time outs, but Oak actually initiated most of the play. I was pleasantly surprised. We actually got them to stay still long enough for a few pics. 

Edited December 22, 2019 by rangeley

[dobiemom]

Happy Chanukah! 🙂

[Cruisefanatic71]

So we are packing for our first ceuuse with my daughters service dog..Thank you to everyone that has provided invaluable information to get everything taken care of as far as the permit from the Bahamas. Looks like we have everything covered but I did have 1 more question that my wife brought up. Am I going to need the USDA APHIS form to reenter the U.S.? My vet is wanting to complete the form but I cannot see anywhere written that this is needed for the Bahamas or for reentry into the U.S. I am going to the vet in the morning to have the Bahamas Health Certificate completed and I am wanting to ensure that I do not need anything else for our return.  Again, thanks to everyone for their input. 

[Algebralovr]

Hi, I’m home!

 

The Spoo was VERY well behaved all trip.

The other dog struggled, a lot.  Apparently they also had an interaction with the Spoo which was negative.  
Some of it was this strangest thing.  The guy with the retriever apparently wanted to dance one evening, so he dropped the leash.  The dog was wandering aimlessly on the dance floor, leash trailing, while the guy danced.  That dog was so uncomfortable, it was so sad.  Every time I saw it, the “handler” had put the dog in an uncomfortable situation.  Poor dog.
 

Meanwhile, we ran into a couple of the crew from our Alaska trip last year.  They asked where my dog was.  I guess it is good to be remembered?  Scooter is back home now and passed out on the sofa next to me.  It is good to be home.

[Algebralovr]

33 minutes ago, Cruisefanatic71 said:

So we are packing for our first ceuuse with my daughters service dog..Thank you to everyone that has provided invaluable information to get everything taken care of as far as the permit from the Bahamas. Looks like we have everything covered but I did have 1 more question that my wife brought up. Am I going to need the USDA APHIS form to reenter the U.S.? My vet is wanting to complete the form but I cannot see anywhere written that this is needed for the Bahamas or for reentry into the U.S. I am going to the vet in the morning to have the Bahamas Health Certificate completed and I am wanting to ensure that I do not need anything else for our return.  Again, thanks to everyone for their input. 

My experience was that my ship expected the APHIS 7001 document, when we went to Canada, even though it did not need to be countersigned.  
I would have the vet fill it out just in case, to get honest.  It won’t cost much extra, and will give you peace of mind.