Sailing to Santander with a dog - Kennels good or to be avoided?

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Pinky5

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Hi

We are planning to sail Plymouth to Santander in Sept with our dog, unfortunately there are no pet friendly cabins available and I'm hoping someone may have experience of using the kennels on board.
We are concerned because reading on trip advisor and other forums it appears security for the kennel area is non existant, which is a real concern as that means anyone can go into the kennel area, push food through the bars or worse case scenario let the dogs loose.
Can anyone put our minds at rest? Just tried to call Brittany Ferries and they have a 30 min wait time to answer!!

Thanks in advance
 
Pinky5 said:
Hi

We are planning to sail Plymouth to Santander in Sept with our dog, unfortunately there are no pet friendly cabins available and I'm hoping someone may have experience of using the kennels on board.
We are concerned because reading on trip advisor and other forums it appears security for the kennel area is non existant, which is a real concern as that means anyone can go into the kennel area, push food through the bars or worse case scenario let the dogs loose.
Can anyone put our minds at rest? Just tried to call Brittany Ferries and they have a 30 min wait time to answer!!

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Used the kennels numerous times, never seen or heard about the issues you mention. The gate to the kennels needs a card so this is a level of security although it isn't always closed.

All the dog owners are in the same boat (literally) and wouldn't do anything to other dogs.

Don't fret but of course people do and no doubt some think the kennels are cruel and barbaric. My experience is the opposite. Just take bedding and a few toys.

Don't bother ringing BF - what do you expect them to say? They won't agree with your concerns.
 
I share your concern, the door to the kennel area is not always secure and could be opened without the swipe card - I saw a member of staff open the door without using the swipe card. Several years ago I found some teenage lads in the kennel area, when questioned they did not have a dog and where " just looking" I was concerned and reported the lack of security to the info desk who noted my concern! Later I demanded to see someone senior and showed an engineer how the access gate could be opened and a possible solution - fit a plate around the lock to prevent fingers being poked through to release the lock. On subsequent trips I observed the door is still not secure. When a pet friendly cabin is unavailable I take my own padlock to lock my pets kennel door. Otherwise all trips have been trouble free.
 
It is what it is unfortunately and dependant on the residents they can be noisy if one is barking constantly but equally it can be quietish.
just a tip if you book, often if the ship is not fully booked they release some of the normal kennels for dogs a few days before sailing date so do phone and check and get an upgrade to a Cabin. Good Luck.

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DBK said:
Used the kennels numerous times, never seen or heard about the issues you mention. The gate to the kennels needs a card so this is a level of security although it isn't always closed.

All the dog owners are in the same boat (literally) and wouldn't do anything to other dogs.

Don't fret but of course people do and no doubt some think the kennels are cruel and barbaric. My experience is the opposite. Just take bedding and a few toys.

Don't bother ringing BF - what do you expect them to say? They won't agree with your concerns.
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It's the non dog owners who worry me who may think of it as a petting zoo, plus also anyone who thinks it may be good idea to give our dog a treat, ours is a tough terrier with the most delicate of stomachs, the results of that would not be good news on board or for the onwards journey! 😆
 
Littlewheels said:
It is what it is unfortunately and dependant on the residents they can be noisy if one is barking constantly but equally it can be quietish.
just a tip if you book, often if the ship is not fully booked they release some of the normal kennels for dogs a few days before sailing date so do phone and check and get an upgrade to a Cabin. Good Luck.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the tip about non dog friendly cabins, we'll keep that in mind if we book and will def keep checking with BF
 
HarryML7 said:
I share your concern, the door to the kennel area is not always secure and could be opened without the swipe card - I saw a member of staff open the door without using the swipe card. Several years ago I found some teenage lads in the kennel area, when questioned they did not have a dog and where " just looking" I was concerned and reported the lack of security to the info desk who noted my concern! Later I demanded to see someone senior and showed an engineer how the access gate could be opened and a possible solution - fit a plate around the lock to prevent fingers being poked through to release the lock. On subsequent trips I observed the door is still not secure. When a pet friendly cabin is unavailable I take my own padlock to lock my pets kennel door. Otherwise all trips have been trouble free.
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Yes thanks, I think if we choose to book we'll def take a padlock for her kennel door, otherwise we'll never sleep for the worry.

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Pinky5 said:
It's the non dog owners who worry me who may think of it as a petting zoo, plus also anyone who thinks it may be good idea to give our dog a treat, ours is a tough terrier with the most delicate of stomachs, the results of that would not be good news on board or for the onwards journey! 😆
Click to expand...
I've never seen non-dog owners on the deck where the kennels are let alone in the kennels although as the story about the "lads" relates there's not much to physically stop them. It's a very small bit at the rear of the vessel and during the day will always have dogs and owners on it. Where dogs and the dogless meet is around the exercise area which is on the deck below the kennels but dogs will always be with their owners there and I've ever seen any issues.
 
Pinky5 said:
Hi

We are planning to sail Plymouth to Santander in Sept with our dog, unfortunately there are no pet friendly cabins available and I'm hoping someone may have experience of using the kennels on board.
We are concerned because reading on trip advisor and other forums it appears security for the kennel area is non existant, which is a real concern as that means anyone can go into the kennel area, push food through the bars or worse case scenario let the dogs loose.
Can anyone put our minds at rest? Just tried to call Brittany Ferries and they have a 30 min wait time to answer!!

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
All good I have used them and never had a problem
 
Our little feller HATED the kennels and after just one crossing we vowed never to use them again. He upset his water, which a kind lady refilled, only for it to happen again. We always managed to get a pet friendly cabin by keeping in touch with BF and getting a cancellation. Definitely NOT guaranteed, but worked for us. Latterly, we drove as that was more pleasant and pricewise similar and not being pressed for time, part of the holiday.

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Sadly due to the lack of dog friendly cabins on all ferry crossings this is the reason most people take the channel tunnel. We are travelling from Plymouth to Santander in April, alas we lost our last dog in February 2023.
 
Sadly due to the lack of dog friendly cabins on all ferry crossings this is the reason most people take the channel tunnel. We are travelling from Plymouth to Santander in April, alas we lost our last dog in February 2023.

We lost Harvey in November, it's gutting isn't it! So sorry for your loss.
 
Don't worry about the security aspect of the kennels, worry about the effect of being placed in the kennels will have on your dog!

Used the kennels on Roscoff to Cork crossing, much shorter than the run to Santander, and never again. Even if your dog is fine with being put in a cage, other dogs' may not be, including mine, and it was bedlam in there. It took ten days for our dog to recover from the experience. I couldn't put Coco through that experience again so 'shelled out' to come back via the UK- Roslare to Pembroke/Tunnel - rather than returning on Brittany Ferry for which I had paid for.

Just our experience of the kennels.
 
flyboyprowler said:
Our little feller HATED the kennels and after just one crossing we vowed never to use them again. He upset his water, which a kind lady refilled, only for it to happen again. We always managed to get a pet friendly cabin by keeping in touch with BF and getting a cancellation. Definitely NOT guaranteed, but worked for us. Latterly, we drove as that was more pleasant and pricewise similar and not being pressed for time, part of the holiday.
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Water goes in the metal dish attached to the door in all the kennels we've used. They can't be knocked over.

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I’ve only used it once and never again, we had a pet friendly cabin, but we were talking to another traveller with a small dog who just keeps is dog in a non pet friendly cabin. !
 
Pinky5 said:
Hi

We are planning to sail Plymouth to Santander in Sept with our dog, unfortunately there are no pet friendly cabins available and I'm hoping someone may have experience of using the kennels on board.
We are concerned because reading on trip advisor and other forums it appears security for the kennel area is non existant, which is a real concern as that means anyone can go into the kennel area, push food through the bars or worse case scenario let the dogs loose.
Can anyone put our minds at rest? Just tried to call Brittany Ferries and they have a 30 min wait time to answer!!

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
We used the kennels 5 or 6 years ago for our rough haired collie who was quite nervous and there was so much barking going on in there she flatly refused to go back in after a walk on the deck, so I spent the rest of the trip on deck with her. Although there was security on the gate people were not bothering to lock it after themselves so the gate was mainly open. On disembarking a lady parked by us who was crying had gone to collect her Shitzu to find he wasn't there she reported this to reception who told her to wait at her vehicle not very helpful we then had to disembark so don't know what happened. We have since booked pet friendly cabins or if gone used the shuttle.
 
Think again before locking your own dog's kennel. In an emergency crew cannot access or release your dog. You may even be prevented from going to the deck.

Personally I will not use a kennel or leave my dog in the vehicle. Short or long crossings.
 
We’ve used the kennels on all ships sailing to Spain twice a year since 2016, using the kennels and never had any problems or heard of any
 
Been using the crossing around half a dozen times. Certainly never had a problem with dogs being "interfered with"! Prefer the kennel cabins, but if not available, no issue using the kennels. Depends how sorted your pooch is, but you can visit them any time. I have heard tales of folk sleeping next to the kennels...
One tip - book your trip with a kennel, then check daily to see if a cabin is free. Only takes a minute, worked for us last time on the 40th attempt 😉

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Pinky5 said:
Hi

We are planning to sail Plymouth to Santander in Sept with our dog, unfortunately there are no pet friendly cabins available and I'm hoping someone may have experience of using the kennels on board.
We are concerned because reading on trip advisor and other forums it appears security for the kennel area is non existant, which is a real concern as that means anyone can go into the kennel area, push food through the bars or worse case scenario let the dogs loose.
Can anyone put our minds at rest? Just tried to call Brittany Ferries and they have a 30 min wait time to answer!!

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...

I would never put my dog in one of those 'kennels'. They're just rows of cages, on top of each other. Whenever I've seen them, I try not to look now because it's too upsetting, the dogs are terrified in a noisy (from the other dogs barking and whining and from the noise of the wind and the boat itself) and cold environment. The door is always open and on cold days the dogs must be freezing. I can't imagine anything worse. Even leaving them in the car with all the car alarms going off is surely preferable than these 'kennels'.

I'm sure some people and some dogs love them but they're not a option for my dog.
 
JRT said:
This is exactly what we planned to do had we not been able to secure a pet friendly cabin on our crossing in June.
Click to expand...

Please don't lock your dog's kennel, if you choose to use one. In an emergency, the crew won't be able to get your dog out!!!
 
Pinky5 said:
Hi

We are planning to sail Plymouth to Santander in Sept with our dog, unfortunately there are no pet friendly cabins available and I'm hoping someone may have experience of using the kennels on board.
We are concerned because reading on trip advisor and other forums it appears security for the kennel area is non existant, which is a real concern as that means anyone can go into the kennel area, push food through the bars or worse case scenario let the dogs loose.
Can anyone put our minds at rest? Just tried to call Brittany Ferries and they have a 30 min wait time to answer!!

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
if you are going on the Pont Avant my only concern would be the outside stairs when wet to get to the kennels these can be very slippery and at the end of the journey if your dog was like my German Shepherd keen to get away it could be dangerous.
 
HKF said:
Please don't lock your dog's kennel, if you choose to use one. In an emergency, the crew won't be able to get your dog out!!!
Click to expand...

We aren't using one, we have managed to get a pet friendly cabin.

Reading some of the comments in this thread I seriously doubt I would book a kennel if we couldn't get a cabin. I already had reservations about using one for our dog and some comments have reinforced this.

We would either change dates till we could (we are retired so have total flexibility) or hop under the Channel and do the long drive.
 
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I would never leave my dogs in any kennel or alone in the van. It's the tunnel for us every time and a long but not unpleasant drive to Spain and I am lucky that I can work remotely so no rush to get back to blighty.

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