A family from Houston, Texas, claimed on Facebook that their dog, Lulu, died in the cargo hold of a United Airlines flight that was delayed Sunday for two hours before taking off.
The family later deleted the post, but United addressed the incident in a statement.
“We are so sorry to learn of Lulu’s passing and have reached out to our customer to offer our condolences and assistance. We are deeply upset any time an animal suffers an injury while traveling with us and especially grieved in the rare instance that one passes away. We are conducting a thorough review of this incident,” United told ABC News.
The dog was a 5-year-old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and had been cleared to fly by the veterinarian a few weeks before the flight from Houston to San Francisco, the family said, ABC News reported.
The family also said there were air conditioning problems in the main cabin during the time the plane was delayed. There was no word on whether the family plans to pursue any legal action against the airline.
Department of Transportation data shows one-third of animals that died during U.S. flights since 2012 were on United flights.
United is already facing a lawsuit from a group of Iowa businessmen whose 3-foot-long rabbit named Simon was found dead after a transatlantic flight. The rabbit was being entered into the Iowa State Fair as the world’s largest rabbit.
Some on Twitter didn’t think sorry was enough to make up for the animal’s death.
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