American Airlines Sued Over Pet
A San Francisco man is suing American Airlines after his dog died after a trip in an airplane's cargo hold.
In his suit, Terrence Ing says his dog, Willie, a 2-year-old English bulldog, was vomiting and breathing poorly when he claimed him in the baggage area after the flight from New York to San Francisco. Ing says airline employees would not release the dog to him and had no veterinarian care available.
Willie died soon after, according to the suit, filed in San Francisco.
It also claims that the temperature was 84 degrees at JFK Airport in New York when the plane took off. American's policy forbids transporting snub-nosed dogs at temperatures above 75 degrees because they can have trouble breathing in hot weather.
American spokesman Tim Smith said he hadn't seen the suit and couldn't comment. But "we do transport safely more than 100,000 pets per year," he said.
A report filed by the Department of Transportation on the incident, which took place in August, says the cause of death could not be determined and concluded that "all policies and procedures were followed."
The suit asks for an injunction preventing American from transporting pets until the airline can provide emergency veterinary care. It also requests compensatory and punitive damages.
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