A heartbroken family has shamed an airline after their pet Golden Retriever died when it was sent on a marathon eight-hour flight by mistake.
Beloved Joca was supposed to travel from Sao Paulo, Brazil, to Sinop, Mato Grosso State, on a flight on 22nd April that should have taken two and a half hours.
Instead, he was put on a plane to Fortaleza, Ceara State, and left unattended apparently for hours while he was flown back to Sao Paulo.
Joca’s family say he was stuck in a cargo hold in a cramped cage for eight hours with limited access to water.
His body was found in the air carrier’s kennels by owner Marcia Fantazzini’s son Joao, who had been in the passenger section of the flight to Sinop.
When he was told of the mistake, he rushed back to Sao Paulo where he waited for Joca to be returned, only to find him dead.
The furious family took to social media to air shame air carriers GOL.
In an Instagram video, Joao was seen crying in front of a flight kennel crate where Joca lay dead.
A tiny water bottle can be seen attached to the kennel’s door.
Joao said: “I arrived at the airport, and a lady, who said she was the manager, approached me.
“She said that Joca hadn’t been feeling well.”
Marcia said: “They put water in a little thing the dog has to lick to get water.
“Then they put the dog back without any evaluation, without any veterinarian examining the animal.”
She added: “They didn’t stabilise the dog, didn’t take him to a refrigerated place, or even walk with him to see how he was and send him back.
“When he arrived here in Guarulhos, they took 30 to 40 minutes, and my son was asking, ‘What happened?’, where’s my dog?’.”
Other footage shows a healthy, happy Joca before his plane ordeal.
According to the death certificate, Joca died from a cardiorespiratory arrest, but the cause has not yet been clarified.
He had had a vet’s fitness to fly certificate for a two-and-a-half hour flight.
In a statement, GOL said they “deeply regret” Joca’s death.
They said, “GOL deeply regrets the incident involving the dog Joca and sympathises with its owner’s pain.
“The company states that the dog Joca was supposed to fly to Sinop (OPS) on flight 1480 on 22/04, departing from Guarulhos (GRU), however, due to an operational failure, the animal was boarded on a flight to Fortaleza (FOR).”
They added: “We empathise with the suffering of Joca’s owner. We understand his pain and deeply regret the loss of his pet.”
Following the death, the airline suspended its transportation service of dogs and cats in cargo holds or aircraft cabins for 30 days.
According to the airline, the suspension, which will last until 23rd May, will allow them to focus on the investigation into Joca’s death fully.
To find out more about the author, editor or agency that supplied this story – please click below. Story By: Simona Kitanovska, Sub-Editor: Simona Kitanovska, Agency: Newsflash
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