We’ve all had to get rid of something while going through airport security at some point, either a bottle of mouthwash or another liquid larger than the arbitrarily-imposed allowance. It’s an inconvenience to throw it away, but you’ll live. That said, I could never imagine ditching a pet — but a woman taking a flight in Pittsburgh didn’t have the same reservation when she left her French bulldog in the parking lot.
According to WTAE, a woman attempted to fly from Pittsburgh International Airport with her French bulldog last week. She tried to claim that her pet was an emotional support animal but was informed that her dog would have to fly in a crate to be allowed on the flight. The dog was later found alone in a stroller in the short-term parking lot, and police were called to the scene.
Jason Donaldson, an Alleghany County Police Sargeant, told WTAE:
“We were able to determine that the dog’s owner had attempted to fly with the dog this morning and was denied boarding due to having an improper cargo container. In turn, the dog was abandoned, and the dog’s owner continued to its resort destination as intended.”
The seven-year-old dog was taken to a local animal shelter and is in good health. The dog’s owner is expected to face an animal abandonment charge. In the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the penalty for animal abandonment can be up to a $1,000 fine. Honestly, the fine is light considering the level of cruelty needed to ditch a pet in a parking lot to go on a vacation.