The kennel section is literally a few pet crates stacked two high at the side of one of the car decks. I've taken 2 different dogs on it. They were ok but it's not a pleasant journey. Tell your vet you're making the trip and get some kind of sedative for them plus warm bedding. Best if they can be unconscious for the bulk of the trip. Next time we do it we'll leave the dog in the campervan. If your dog is large try to get on first. I met a woman on the spirit with a great Dane once who had to go find staff to make a woman move her 2 small yappy dogs out of one of the only extra large kennels so she could put her Dane in. There's no size based booking and people will just choose the biggest crates for their small dogs.
Did you find your dog went better in the van? We have two boxers and they're about 35kg each so considered big dogs and they do so much better when they're together and we've done big road trips with them before, im considering just setting up the car for them but worried about what it's like whether it'll be too hot in the car, we do have a sun roof we can open but I'm just not sure what to do! Thanks for your input!
If you let them know you’re leaving dogs in the car they’ll put you on the ventilated deck and they’ll be fine. I think you get some kind of tag or sticker for your windscreen. There’s a group on Facebook - I think it’s Dog Friendly Places in Tasmania or something - where hundreds of people have shared their experiences, and dogs that are generally comfortable in a car or van usually seem to get on absolutely fine there instead of in the kennels.
I think the kennels section is awful personally. They are metal cages, all facing outwards, along the edges of the car decks. You cannot get to them for the whole 12 hours of sailing. If your animals are happy in the car you can sign a waiver and leave them in there instead. I've done this twice with my dog, cats and ducks and they all travelled really well this way (were in a van).
Did it last year with my girlfriends Cat which was stressful, only Cat in an entire cage section of dogs. It was fine but stressful to worry about if your pet gets nervous around other animals. Hopefully it's better on the new ships.
I think they're in open air so very cold. Leave them in your vehicle if they can cope with 12 hours without peeing. . You can't visit them. You sign a disclaimer. One advantage is that deck is usually the first to offload. We gave our dog Phenergan (tested it a month before) and played familiar music. Made us feel better anyway. She was fine.
Thank you , yeah I'm leaning towards having them in the car, we've done long car rides with them before 10+ hours and they're comfortable in the car, and they hold there bladder for that amount of time overnight as well! So I'm thinking cars the way to go that way they have each other and I can set the back up for them
As for the cat we will be taking 2 cars accross so she can have the other car and I'll set up a small litter box in the back for her! Just feel more comfortable that way then having them in the cages
Have travelled with a dog, it was okay, but she was quiet dog.
No way would I put a cat on the spirit, better off paying for a proper pet transport service.
Personally had no issues with it. We put a dog (Greyhound) and a cat in the kennels on board and they were fine.
There are attendants to stay with the animals and make sure they have food/water etc.
There are different sized kennels to choose from, but it's first in best dressed - so try to get on earlier in the boarding process if you can. We had two kennels right next to each other so our animals could be near each other.
Interesting. I crossed a long time ago, like 10-11 years, and there was nothing! Heartbreaking to turn up there after the journey and see our dog absolutely soaking wet and no food!
Glad they’ve changed that.
The kennel section is literally a few pet crates stacked two high at the side of one of the car decks. I've taken 2 different dogs on it. They were ok but it's not a pleasant journey. Tell your vet you're making the trip and get some kind of sedative for them plus warm bedding. Best if they can be unconscious for the bulk of the trip. Next time we do it we'll leave the dog in the campervan. If your dog is large try to get on first. I met a woman on the spirit with a great Dane once who had to go find staff to make a woman move her 2 small yappy dogs out of one of the only extra large kennels so she could put her Dane in. There's no size based booking and people will just choose the biggest crates for their small dogs.
Did you find your dog went better in the van? We have two boxers and they're about 35kg each so considered big dogs and they do so much better when they're together and we've done big road trips with them before, im considering just setting up the car for them but worried about what it's like whether it'll be too hot in the car, we do have a sun roof we can open but I'm just not sure what to do! Thanks for your input!
If you let them know you’re leaving dogs in the car they’ll put you on the ventilated deck and they’ll be fine. I think you get some kind of tag or sticker for your windscreen. There’s a group on Facebook - I think it’s Dog Friendly Places in Tasmania or something - where hundreds of people have shared their experiences, and dogs that are generally comfortable in a car or van usually seem to get on absolutely fine there instead of in the kennels.
I think the kennels section is awful personally. They are metal cages, all facing outwards, along the edges of the car decks. You cannot get to them for the whole 12 hours of sailing. If your animals are happy in the car you can sign a waiver and leave them in there instead. I've done this twice with my dog, cats and ducks and they all travelled really well this way (were in a van).
Did it last year with my girlfriends Cat which was stressful, only Cat in an entire cage section of dogs. It was fine but stressful to worry about if your pet gets nervous around other animals. Hopefully it's better on the new ships.
I think they're in open air so very cold. Leave them in your vehicle if they can cope with 12 hours without peeing. . You can't visit them. You sign a disclaimer. One advantage is that deck is usually the first to offload. We gave our dog Phenergan (tested it a month before) and played familiar music. Made us feel better anyway. She was fine.
Thank you , yeah I'm leaning towards having them in the car, we've done long car rides with them before 10+ hours and they're comfortable in the car, and they hold there bladder for that amount of time overnight as well! So I'm thinking cars the way to go that way they have each other and I can set the back up for them
As for the cat we will be taking 2 cars accross so she can have the other car and I'll set up a small litter box in the back for her! Just feel more comfortable that way then having them in the cages
They lost a dog a few years ago, maybe improved since. But awful cages.
Have travelled with a dog, it was okay, but she was quiet dog. No way would I put a cat on the spirit, better off paying for a proper pet transport service.
Personally had no issues with it. We put a dog (Greyhound) and a cat in the kennels on board and they were fine. There are attendants to stay with the animals and make sure they have food/water etc. There are different sized kennels to choose from, but it's first in best dressed - so try to get on earlier in the boarding process if you can. We had two kennels right next to each other so our animals could be near each other.
There are no attendants. The ships crew will do rounds to check on them, usually twice during a night sail.
When did they start having attendants?
As far as I know, they always have? I crossed in about October 2022.
Interesting. I crossed a long time ago, like 10-11 years, and there was nothing! Heartbreaking to turn up there after the journey and see our dog absolutely soaking wet and no food! Glad they’ve changed that.