Report Details

Carrier and flight number. • DL3008 Date and time of the incident. • 5/02/2025 @ 1051 AM Description of the animal, including name, if known. • Sushi • 10-year-old, Male neutered • Shiba Inu mix Narrative description of the incident. • An adult dog was traveling via Delta Cargo inbound into ATL from DAY. Upon arrival, agents noticed that the dog was outside its crate and was found inside the cargo hold of the aircraft. Local animal control was called to retrieve the pet from the cargo hold. It was noticed that the pet was bleeding from its mouth, thus he was immediately taken to a local emergency animal hospital for veterinary care. A veterinarian examined the pet, and it was determined that the dog sustained injuries to its mouth, presumably while escaping its crate. The dog was bleeding from its gums and multiple teeth were broken or missing. No other abnormalities were noted with the pet. The veterinarian examined the dog and determined that bleeding had stopped and there was no need for surgery or sutures for the pet. After receiving veterinary care (medication for pain relief and antibiotics) the pet was released to move forward to its destination. The following day, the pet travel crate was replaced with an IATA compliant crate and the dog was transported to its destination in SEA. • Contact with the pet owner was maintained the entire time. The pet arrived in SEA without incident and was reunited with its owner. Narrative description of the cause of the incident. • No external damage to the crate was identified from falling objects. The crate was intact, however the grid covering the ventilation opening on one side of the crate was found adjacent to the crate. Blood was noted below the ventilation opening. The opening allowed the dog to escape the crate. • We suspect that the dog damaged the crate and obtained injuries to its mouth during the process of escaping its crate. Based upon the findings, we determined that the injuries were self-inflicted. Narrative description of any corrective action taken in response to the incident. • All agents followed Delta Cargo’s internal procedures to obtain veterinary care for the injured dog. No corrective actions required.