Page 8 - IAV Digital Magazine #446

iAV - Antelope Valley Digital Magazine
United Airlines Mistakenly Flies Family’s Dog To Japan Instead Of Kansas City
By Hilary Hanson
A U.S. family’s cross-country move became a lot more stressful after United Airlines mistaken- ly flew their dog to Japan.
Kara and Joseph Swindle told KCTV-5 that they and their two chil- dren had landed in Kansas City, Missouri, on Tuesday expect- ing to be reunited with their German
shepherd, Irgo. The dog had trav- eled in a kennel in the cargo hold of a different United flight.
Instead, the fami- ly was met with a Great Dane they had never seen before. Apparently, a United mix-up had sent Irgo all the way to Japan, which is where the Great Dane was meant to go.
A United spokesman con- firmed the inci- dent in a state- ment to HuffPost. “An error occurred during connections in Denver for two pets sent to the wrong destina- tions,” he said. “We have notified our customers that their pets have arrived safely and will arrange to return the pets to them as soon as possi- ble. We apologize
for this mistake and are following up with the ven- dor ken- nel where they were kept overnight to under- stand what hap- pened.”
Kara
Swindle, whose family is in
the process of moving from Oregon to Wichita, Kansas, told KCTV-5 that she just wants her beloved pet to be safe.
“I don’t know what else to do at this point,” she said. “I can’t cry anymore. I’ve cried too much.”
This is far from the most alarming dog-related inci- dent on a United
flight this week. On Monday, a 10-month-old puppy died in the cabin of a plane after passengers say a flight atten- dant made the dog’s owner stow the puppy in the overhead bin.
United had the highest number of animal deaths and injuries of any U.S. airline in 2017, based on Department of Transportation data. Out of the 24 pet deaths that occurred aboard U.S. carri- ers last year, 18 were on United flights. The airline had 2.24 “inci- dents” — mean- ing animal deaths or injuries ― per 10,000 animals transported. American Airlines had the next highest incident rate, with 0.87 incidents per 10,000 animals transported.
The vast majority of animals flown in cargo holds get to their destina- tions safely. But animal welfare experts typically recommend against it, sug- gesting you either take your pet in the cabin with you, if permitted, or choose anoth- er method of transportation if you have to travel with an animal.
“Putting pets in cargo areas should be avoid- ed whenever pos- sible,” Inga Fricke, director of pet retention pro- grams at The Humane Society of the United States, told HuffPost last year. “Once that animal is out of your control, there are so many risks it can be exposed to that it’s just not worth it.”
iAV - Antelope Valley Digital Magazine