Man seeks answers as Delta loses dog.
 

:td:

http://abcnews.go.com/US/man-searchi...ry?id=26814835

From what I read in the comments on Jezebel (totally unreliable, I know), there seems to be a trend that when a dog dies in cargo, Delta claims the dog is lost. Sadly, that would not surprise me.

If at all possible, please do not put your dog in the cargo hold.

Delta loses dog, offers $200 e-cert
 

I'm not a fan of pitbulls at all, but if DL lost their dog, no matter what type, they need to do more. Pets are like family members, you pay a reasonable amount for transport, and you should be insured that they are taking care of your pooch.

The kennel looks to have been dropped, thus allowing the hinges of the door to come out. Delta pooched it, literally and figuratively.

I have seen large dogs, strong breeds break out of kennels (just like the one pictured) at a shelter I volunteered at many years ago.

DL should put a policy in place not to accept Pits or other aggressive breeds. I feel sorry for this guy and I hope he is reunited with his dog. This guy was moving, so I understand the need to transport his loving pet. The article does not say where the dog broke out of its crate. Was it on the ramp at LAX, air cargo, on the plane? I guess it was at LAX, since that is where they are looking.

Perhaps DL is not telling the whole story. Perhaps a ramp agent opened the crate door to give water or to pet fido - and the dog took off. We will never know, but I do know dogs can get out of these carriers.

I understand people have to transport animals, but I have seen people checking in Fido to go on vacation for a week and check the pet as cargo. A cargo bin is pitch black, noisy and cold. This is not the case this time, as he was moving. If not moving, get a pet sitter or find a kennel - don't torture your pet!

Zip ties are your best friend with this type of kennel.

Just another thought, may be the dog was stolen by a ramp worker? There has to be CCTV footage of the incident somewhere. The dog was microchipped. I sure hope it was not stolen.

Kl lost my dog crate two days. Slow gave me a 150 Amex gc. I paid $200 to bring the dog to TXL from MIA. I should have at least got a refund. (It is in dispute with visa at the moment.)

Yes, Delta is responsible as they accepted the animal and kennel as it was, there's no two ways about it.

A pet is a member of a family. You don't put a $$ value on it so this is tricky as far as compensation goes. If they lost one of my dogs no skypesos or money could make up for it.

Doesn't DL or the owner have insurance for this type of thing?

As a dog owner I would be extraordinarily upset if an airline lost my dog. However in this case it sounds like it wasn't the airline's fault (if your dog can chew through the carrier, then use a stronger carrier). What happened after the dog went missing does seem a little odd though. Is there a rule about a carrier being strong enough to confine the dog inside it?

I recall a few years ago, when I was living in North Carolina, a judge there ruled that pets were property not family members from a legal standpoint. Any damage or destruction of that property by another party only entitled the owner to reimbursement of replacement value. While I think of my dog as a member of the family, I can understand the method of reimbursement for a pet.

Now, that's not to say the owner in this case can't go after Delta in civil court for emotional damages or something.

Yes, DL is responsible because they took something from you and you paid to transport it.

DL however cannot "compensate" people in any different way because they have attached an arbitrary feeling to their dog that has now turned them into a person.

That is no different than someone demanding obscene compensation/effort because he has a special connection to his favorite Brown Tumi bag that his wife gave him.

That is a risk you take by passing over responsibility to the airline - just like if I put a camera in my checked bag. (and no, this is not me advocating to allow animals in the cabin)

Having been a ramper in a past life with a different carrier, we had a few dogs that got out of kennels. It can be quite the circus trying to corral a scared dog on a busy airport ramp. At least one was never found. :(

Usually it was because the dog either was strong enough to break out of the cheap plastic kennel or the kennel wasn't assembled correctly.

I can't speak for the DL ramp, but we were always very good to dogs (many rampers have pets too). Many people would tape food and notes to the top of the kennel, and if the dog was on a layover, we'd feed it and refill its water.

One of the funniest scenarios was a dog that got loose in the bulk pit of a 777. It was a boxer who was not going to let anyone enter the pit to help him out. This is a problem for many reasons, but one of which is how high in the air the bulk pit is on a 777. If the dog (or ramper) had fallen to the ground, they'd have been seriously injured. We had to call animal control. Unfortunately, this meant that pax bags in the aft and bulk were delayed for almost an hour as they finally subdued the dog (he got stuck in the curtain between bulk/aft). Thankfully everything was ok.

Personally, I would never travel with a dog in cargo (especially on long flights). It's dark, dogs are sensitive to the pressure differences, smells, and noise, and you never know if there's other dogs next to them.

Thanks for sharing. I've dealt with other people's dogs somewhat regularly working at a pet-friendly hotel, and have also had dogs of my own for most of my life. Along the way, a dog gets loose every so often, and it's a crap shoot as to how they'll react, especially in an unfamiliar environment like a hotel lobby or airport ramp.

One useful trick I've found that seems to work (and which I learned from the manager of our kennel, who knows far more than me): Instead of chasing or trying to corner the dog, just have someone lay down on their back. The dog's confusion usually converts to curiosity, and when they come over to figure out what's going on you can gently snag their collar.

I suppose YMMV on whether you want to lay down in the middle of busy ramp...