As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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In November we are cruising on the Dream to Nassau and Castaway Cay before we head to WDW for a few days. (If you want to read about our trip, I have a PTR started in the WDW Sharing Your Adventure called "A Dream and a Giraffe PTR".)
When I called DCL to let them know we would be bringing a Service Dog I found out a few things:
They generally try to book you into a verandah room so that the SD can go outside to do his/her business.
There is a Service Dog Special Needs area on Deck 4. (After our cruise, I can give you more info on this.)
To take a SD in to the Bahamas (and I would guess any other foreign country) you need to get a special permit from that country's consulate. Chris at DCL was able to get me the contact info for the Bahamian Consulate so I could call to request the application form.
As I learn and experience more with taking a SD on a Disney cruise, I will post the info here.
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I have never seen a service dog on a cruise come to think of it, that's great that they are accommodating. I can't wait to hear the details, and how the dog liked the cruise! Keep us posted!
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I would like to add, Before taking a service dog on a cruise ship I would get the dog conditioned to being on a boat, Even a small one will help it get the feel for the motion on being on water. training & conditioning a dog to many experiences is a must in service dog training.
I would think that one of the concerns would be the "surface" provided for the dog to do it's business. Many dogs will only use grass or dirt. If they use pads or some sort of artificial grass on the cruise it could be helpful to use this at home for a while before the cruise so that the dog is comfortable. I don't know if this is part of service dog training or not.
I would think that one of the concerns would be the "surface" provided for the dog to do it's business. Many dogs will only use grass or dirt. If they use pads or some sort of artificial grass on the cruise it could be helpful to use this at home for a while before the cruise so that the dog is comfortable. I don't know if this is part of service dog training or not.
This is a good idea. I had not thought of this before.
I would think that one of the concerns would be the "surface" provided for the dog to do it's business. Many dogs will only use grass or dirt. If they use pads or some sort of artificial grass on the cruise it could be helpful to use this at home for a while before the cruise so that the dog is comfortable. I don't know if this is part of service dog training or not.
I'd also be worried that the pup knew just where was OK. I wouldn't want to be th next people in a balcony cabin where a service dog over-stepped his bounds, if you know what I mean?
I'm curious. Does a service dog need to be insured? I know they are highly trained, but I imagine if the dog were to get overheated, disoriented or react to a loud crowd and bite someone a lawsuit would be expected. Who is responsible?
We have a Service Dog for our daughter. If he damaged something, we would be responsible - it would come under our home owner’s insurance.
I’m pretty sure that people trying to pawn off their poorly trained dogs as Service Dogs might not think about that.
I have not been on a cruise, but have seen pictures of the ‘dog toilet accommodation’ for the cruise. Think of a bigger cat litter box. The pictures I have seen are about 4 feet square, but what is in them for the dog to ‘go’ on apparently depends on the cruise line and maybe even the boat.
I’ve read grass, artificial grass, mulch of different types, pellets something like cat litter.
So, before going on cruise, it would be good to get the dog used to different surfaces and a small size box to go in.
I’m pretty sure that people trying to pawn off their poorly trained dogs as Service Dogs might not think about that.
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Yikes! I didn't even think about the training part. I guess the first thing the courts would do is try to proove that the dog was not properly trained, which would take a case to a whole new level.
When I was in Disney with Deb, she was pointing out how you could tell a real service dog from a family pet in a vest.
I don't know a whole lot about this. Do the dogs have to go through a certification training? This is a really interesting conversation!
From what I understand there is no regulation or certification in place, That's the problem. If there was then family pets with no training would not be out there posing as service dogs.
I love dogs, and I know people do love theirs & want them with them all the time, But it is a dis-service to them to be put in places that will stress them out.
From what I understand there is no regulation or certification in place, That's the problem. If there was then family pets with no training would not be out there posing as service dogs.
I love dogs, and I know people do love theirs & want them with them all the time, But it is a dis-service to them to be put in places that will stress them out.
I agree. It also diminishes (to the public) the high quality of training that goes into each real service dog. I have a neighbor who insists on riding her bike with her dog in the saddlebag. The dog quivers and whines as she is put there, and is constantly trying to jump out. Why would you do that to an animal? I know some dogs might enjoy it, but this one clearly is terrified.
You do NOT need to pay the $10 fee for a service dog, as they waive it - write on the application that the dog is your service dog so they know why you did not send in the fee.
Since you cruise is so soon, you will need to fax in the form and have the permit faxed back to you, otherwise it can take weeks to months to get the form in the mail. The permit they fax back to you will have all the requirements listed in it (basically, an int'l health certificate [must be from a USDA-certified vet, but does not need to be endorsed by your local USDA office] stating the dog has had the typical vaccines [the three-year rabies vaccine is fine for the Bahamas, you do not need to do a rabies titer] plus the Leptospirosis vaccine and a negative fecal float [test of the dog's poop]).
Each country has its own rules about dog importation, some requiring seven or more months of preparation time due to rabies titers and waiting after it/them and some only requiring a recent health certificate. (Hawaii also requires a rabies titer and a six-month wait after it before your dog is allowed to enter. They also have other requirements about proof that the dog is a service dog and such. It is easier - and cheaper - to get into the Bahamas, so that's a good choice for your dog's first int'l trip!) Some countries won't allow your dog to step off the ship at all (this includes Jamaica and Barbados).
Ms. Butterfly, Questions for you...
You said "They also have other requirements about proof that the dog is a service dog and such."
What proof would they want? A certification certificate? A letter from a medical person that suggested a service dog? paperwork from a certified service dog training facility?
Have you traveled out of the country with a service dog before? If so please tell us more .. Also wondering if there is any trouble with stray dogs in other countries giving you issues? I have heard of packs of strays running loose is some countries..
Ms. Butterfly, Questions for you...
You said "They also have other requirements about proof that the dog is a service dog and such."
What proof would they want? A certification certificate? A letter from a medical person that suggested a service dog? paperwork from a certified service dog training facility?
Have you traveled out of the country with a service dog before? If so please tell us more .
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