Wednesday, August 4, 2010

SEVEN PUPPIES DEAD after American Airlines Flight to Chicago


TheHuffingtonPost.com  Seven out of 14 puppies that shipped on an American Airlines flight Wednesday morning are now dead.

The flight, which came from Tulsa to Chicago, arrived at O'Hare at 8:54 a.m. Wednesday. Five of the puppies died immediately after landing, American Airlines spokeswoman Mary Frances Fagan told CBS 2.

Two more dogs died at the veterinarian's office.

The airlines has launched an investigation into the matter, as the Chicago Tribune reported:

"We still have to talk to the employees who handled them. We plan to do that today," Fagan said. "They may have arrived alive, right now we don't know."

"We're going to figure out what happened. We've been transporting animals safely for 50 years. We do not want this happening again," Fagan said.

The puppies' cause of death is still unknown, although all the animals were described as looking "very lethargic" when they came off the plane, and workers were attempting to cool them off once they landed.
National Canine Cancer Foundation

27 comments:

Homer said...

Man, this sucks. How can this happen? Can you please let us know how the investigation goes?

Love,
Homer

~Kim at Golden Pines~ said...

How very sad, and how very heartbreaking!!! I thought that in certain temps the airlines wouldn't allow animals to fly--How disappointing to hear that this may no longer be the rule!!

Sue said...

We flew two of our dogs when they were pups. The airlines wouldn't take dogs on board during certain temperatures and what we're experiencing now is way over their limit.

JacksDad said...

Which is why I can't imagine putting a dog in the hold of a plane...

Chester said...

I agree with JackDaddy. So sad, so unnecessary.

Thanks for stoppin' by my blog and lettin' such a nice pee mail. I'm still tryin' to keep Mom sane as she attends to the needs of my GrandPUs which have become many more than originally planned.

Take care and I hope to return to DogBlogville on a regular basis again some day.
Chester ;0=)

♥♥ The OP Pack ♥♥ said...

Sheesh, with the temps we are having here, who would be insane enough to let puppies fly anyway.

So sad.

Woos ~ The OP Pack

Two French Bulldogs said...

oh...so terrible..Now there is "petair."
Benny & Lily

Unknown said...

I have flown some dogs on American in the past. They were very considerate and very strict about the temperature regulation. I hope someone didn't just drop the ball, letting these poor pups suffer heat stroke in the hold :(. Why fly in this weather? It is hot throughout the country! So sad.

KT and Easton said...

This is very sad, but not that much of a surprise. Quite a legacy for the worst run business in the U.S. (airlines in general). It has been 20 years since I put one of my fur-babies in the luggage hold of an airliner. I feel very bad for the poor puppies and the people that cared for them.

Teri and her Stylish Adventure Cats said...

This is sad, but I don't understand how they were permitted to be shipped this time of year. I have flown cats on American, Continental and Delta and they all have temperature restrictions. And I have my own 'guidelines' too...that it must be between 50 and 70 degrees when the plane takes off and when it lands, and I won't fly a cat this time of year...anywhere. I have had people buy me a round trip ticket to carry their cat in the cabin with me, and also had them use their frequent flyer miles to come and get a kitten. This terrible situation had multiple errors along the way, starting with the shippers and ending with the airline...

Golden Woofs! SUGAR said...

Woof! Woof! YES we saw this on the news (we are from Chicago). It is very sad. This is one reason why my family refuse to take me on their trips. Hope they find out right a way the cause of death. Thanks for sharing. Lots of Golden Woofs, Sugar

Lacy said...

w00fs, me agrees its to hot in the cargo section of a plane..my friend, joan has a pup coming from alaska, but not until late october...when the heat cools down some..RIP little puppies, run with the wind..sooo sad..

b safe,
~rocky~

The Life of Riley said...

So sad and tragic. I hope they find out why, so this doesn't happen to any other animals.

An English Shepherd said...

Very sad :-(

Wizz

Teddy Bear said...

That is so sad.:(

Love,
Teddy Bear

houndstooth said...

As hot as it has been here (we live downstate, but close enough to Chicago to feel the current heat wave) I cannot believe that anyone would have been stupid enough to put a bunch of puppies on an airplane! The airline should have turned them down, but whoever put them on the plane to begin with is the one I put mostly at fault. It's too bad for those poor puppies!

Golden Samantha said...

Just READ about this on CNN online and was horrified. OMG - poor little puppies - how awful for them - sounds like their "compartments" were waaaay too hot. Horrible.. just horrible.
xo Sammie and Ma

Ruby's Raiser said...

Incomprehensible. I can't decide whether I'm more furious or terribly, terribly sad for how those puppies suffered, so I think I'll just equally be both.

♥I am Holly♥ said...

That is so heartbreaking. It should not have ever happened. Lots of love, Debbie and Holly

Meeka said...

That is so sad and awful. The airlines should have not allowed dogs or any animals to travel via cargo during this weather.

Mochi and Bali said...

That's so sad. :(

Mochi

fromsophiesview said...

OK now this is pretty sick! So I guess I won't be going anywhere anymore...I hate gambling!

Sagira said...

This is why I would never fly with Sagira unless she can sit with me INSIDE! She isn't cargo.

The Oceanside Animals said...

I heard about this but can't bear to read the article.

Molly the Airedale said...

OMG, how horrible! Our dad was at O'Hare on Wednesday heading home to us!

Love ya lots
Maggie and Mitch

Tweedles -- that's me said...

That is sad sad news.
All business are trying to cut, cut, cut. Is this one of this cut backs, or did someone mess up and not watch like they should be.
Animals should have just as much good treatment as people. In fact animals should be first class
love
tweedles

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