Alejandro died on a Delta flight last Wednesday. Good Morning America/ABC A dog died during a layover in Detroit on a Delta flight from…
Alejandro died on a Delta flight last Wednesday. Good Morning America/ABC
A dog died during a layover in Detroit on a Delta flight from Phoenix to Newark on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the airline told CNN. Delta said it’s investigating the incident.
The eight-year-old Pomeranian named Alejandro was found dead in its cage in the cargo hold. A Delta official told CNN the dog was discovered with vomit and fluids in its cage. A local Detroit news station also reported that Alejandro’s blanket had blood stains on it.
“He was in their care and they didn’t take care of him,” Michael Dellegrazie, the dog’s owner, told a local Detroit news station .
Alejandro was found dead on a layover in Detroit in the space of a half-hour.
“There was a stop in Detroit at 6 a.m. Alejandro was checked on. He was alive,” Evan Oshan, an attorney representing the dog owner, told CNN. “Then between 8 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. he was checked on again and he was dead.”
Delta said it’s investigating the situation and has been working with Dellegrazie to support him.
“We know pets are an important member of the family and we are focused on the well-being of all animals we transport,” the airline said in a statement provided to INSIDER. “As part of that review, we want to find out more about why this may have occurred to ensure it doesn’t happen again.”
Delta also said the dog’s owner didn’t allow it to perform a necropsy on the body to figure out what happened.
“Delta offered to have Alejandro evaluated by a veterinarian while in our possession to find out more about why this may have occurred,” the airlane said in the statement. “We are disappointed that we were not allowed to have a necropsy performed immediately following this unfortunate situation.”
The animal death comes after a series of animal mishaps with the airline United. In March, a French bulldog died after a flight attendant made an attendant put it in an overhead bin.
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