A beloved traveler’s dog that went missing after escaping from a Delta Airlines crate in Georgia was found safe and sound Saturday — after spending more than three weeks on the lam.
Maia the chihuahua mix was found by a good Samaritan hiding under a cargo rack at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta.
“I said nothing and walked over to the end of the shelf and started twisting under it behind me. It was about 10 inches off the ground,” local animal activist Robin Cole Allgood said on Facebook.
“I reached towards him and he still didn’t notice I was behind him…I took a deep breath and just grabbed his waist without hesitation. The next thing I heard was someone yelling ‘Robin got him!!!!’”
Although tired, the dog appeared to be in good health and was taken to the vet for a full evaluation, the airline confirmed.
Maia has been missing since she left her crate on Aug. 18 while her owner, Dominican Republic national Paula Rodriguez, is being questioned by border agents, her attorney said.
Maia was found safely hiding in the Atlanta airport 24 days after she disappeared from her crate.Facebook
Rodriguez was forced to return to his home country instead of San Francisco because of his visa ineligibility — although officials acknowledged his pet was nowhere to be found.
Delta offered Rodriguez $1,800 for the tragic incident, which the dog’s owner felt was an “insult” to not being able to replace his pet, his attorney said.
That’s when Allgood stepped up to the task by putting up signs around the airport for the missing dog, which turned out to be crucial to Maia’s rescue.
Robin Cole Allgood is leading the rehabilitation effort to bring Maia home to her owner.Facebook
A FedEx cargo worker called Allgood at 2:30 a.m. Saturday to report seeing the puppy the day before, prompting him to rush to the airport.
Allgood said airport staff took him on several “wild goose chases” before finally escorting him to the North Cargo facility around 6 p.m.
At that moment, the mother realized she was going to miss her flight to Hawaii with her family – but decided the vacation could wait another day, while the puppy could not.
Maia was found hiding under a cargo rack at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta.Facebook
“I can’t leave without seeing Maia. I promised Paula in the beginning that I would find her!” Allgood said.
A group of airport workers and Allgood eventually found Maia hiding under an outside cargo rack, but had difficulty reaching the terrified dog.
Dozens of workers tried to get him out of his cramped hiding place with wildlife nets, long poles and barricades surrounding the place.
But the effort turned out to be fruitless.
“Everybody was standing around talking about what to do next…me being me decided I was going to go for this dog,” Allgood recalled.
Although exhausted, Maia was found by the vet to be in remarkable health.X / @ATLairport
He shimmied under the shelf and managed to get Maia to safety.
A veterinarian reportedly said the dog was in remarkable shape considering he had been missing for 24 days in the sweltering Atlanta summer.
Amazingly, Maia’s footpads showed no heat damage, a suggestion that she may have only moved through the airport area at night — which also explains why she went so long without being seen.
Maia will be returned to owner Paula Rodriguez in the Dominican Republic.Facebook
Maia’s owner was reportedly overwhelmed after hearing the good news and can’t wait to be reunited with her beloved family member.
What next legal steps Rodriguez will take is unclear.
Her lawyers have been in talks with Delta after Maia’s loss, particularly after the airline offered an $1,800 mishandling offer that it later defended, claiming it was not a “compensation offer”
The Rodriguez family spent an undisclosed amount of money and resources to find their pet themselves.
Rodriguez’s mother flew to Atlanta herself to find the missing puppy after her daughter was denied entry into the country.
Categories: Trending
Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
