A woman has claimed that a US airline lost her dog after she arrived in the country from the Dominican Republic.
Paula Rodriguez had travelled to Atlanta, Georgia, from the Caribbean last Friday when she was denied entry into the country by border officials.
“They told me very kindly, ‘We’re so sorry, but you don’t meet the requirements to enter the US, you’ve been denied entry, and you need to be sent back home to Santo Domingo’,” Rodriguez told local television station Atlanta News First.
Ms Rodriguez was told she’d need to spend the night in a detention centre, which meant she was separated from her dog, Maia. She’d rescued the dog from the streets, and has had her since the animal was one month old.
Returning to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport the following day, Ms Rodriguez discovered that the dog was missing.
“I was like, ‘I’m sorry, I can’t get on this plane, I don’t know where my dog is’,” she said. “I was crying, I had panic attacks on the plane.”
She added that she was told she had to board the plane as US Border Control told her that legally she wasn’t allowed to stay in the airport for more than 24 hours.
After arriving back in the Dominican Republic, Ms Rodriguez called Delta a number of times. A staff member contacted her two days later, confirming that the dog was missing after breaking out of its kennel, she said.
“Without food, without water, she must be scared,” said Ms Rodriguez. She told The Independent that she believe she will soon be reunited with her beloved pet.
Andrew Gobeil, director of communications and public affairs at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, told Atlanta News First that staff at the world’s busiest airport will try to capture the pet if they see it but so far they “have not encountered the dog, but will continue to remain vigilant should she appear.”
A spokesperson for Delta told The Independent: “Delta teams have been working to locate and reunite this pet with the customer and we remain in touch with the customer to provide updates. Delta people feel deeply concerned for the customer and the dog and we’re committed to ongoing search efforts, working closely with the City of Atlanta Department of Aviation and other stakeholders.”
