Airline: Continental
Incident Date: May 09, 2008
Report Date: August 2008
Incident Type: Loss
Animal: Dog
Brachycephalic: No Definition
Animal Age: 5 years
Flight Number: 1566
Originating Airport: IAH (George Bush Intercontinental/Houston)
Destination Airport: SFO (San Francisco International)
Reporting Airport: SFO (San Francisco International)
Report:
INCIDENT #2 CO Flight #1566 Houston to San Francisco Dog – Golden Retriever Mix/ 6 years old May 9, 2008 Female/ Name: “Sassyâ€
Owner/Guardian REDACTED
DOT Incident Reporting Page 2 July 15, 2008
Narrative Description:
Description of the Incident: Sassy arrived SFO safely and was awaiting her owner to pick her up. Agents noticed that Sassy had vomit in her crate and was lying very still in the back of her crate (not moving, looked very lethargic or possibly dead). A well-meaning agent began to try to rouse her and see if she was alright. Because she was not responding to his efforts, the agent opened the cage door to attach a leash but Sassy jumped up and ran past the agent and out the front door of the baggage claim area.
Description of the Cause of the Incident: The escape occurred because agent(s) were well-meaning and were trying to ensure the safety and well-being of this pet. Their error was not securing the crate in an office where Sassy could not escape our care if she ran out of the crate.
Description of any corrective action taken: The agents involved were coached and disciplined for failing to secure the crate in an office prior to opening the door. The entire staff including Managers and Directors have searched the nearby fields and neighborhoods. Reward Posters (more than 100) have been posted to alert the community and offer a reward for the return of this pet, and the search still continues.
PetFlight Report:
August 2008 Airline Pet Travel Report
Original Report
Map of all airports that have reported an air travel, pet related incident.
The inspiration for PetFlight.