Thousands apply to adopt dog abandoned at airport ticket counter
After the media frenzy, the pup found a new home with one of the police officers who rescued him.
Photo: Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
A two-year-old dog was abandoned by his owner at Las Vegas' Harry Reid International Airport at the beginning of February – and after the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department put out a news release detailing the abandonment, adoption requests poured in to offer the goldendoodle a new home.
Police said that “airline staff advised the dog’s owner she was required to complete online documentation to travel with the animal as a service dog,” and “when the required paperwork was not completed, the passenger was denied a boarding pass. She then left the dog behind and proceeded through the airport to the departure gate,” the LVMPD said. LVMPD later located the dog's owner at a gate within the airport, where she was confronted about the abandonment. The woman said that airline JetBlue would not allow her to fly with the dog, implying that she could leave the animal behind and he would be returned to her. Police reported that toward the end of the interaction, the woman became hostile.
After the abandonment, the dog was put into the custody of Animal Protective Services. Following ten days without contact from the woman, he was put into local rescue organization Retriever Rescue. He was also given a name, JetBlue, after the airline whose ticket counter he was left at.
Security footage of a woman abandoning her dog at Harry Reid International Airport on Feb. 2. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department/Facebook
“He is affectionate, gentle, and incredibly social. He greets everyone with trust and warmth, which is honestly remarkable given what he went through,” Danielle Roth, a spokesperson for the rescue organization, told People.
After the story became public, the organization received over 2,400 adoption applications for the pup. Requests poured in both from local areas and abroad. But the dog's new home ended up being with one of his rescuers.
Weeks after the goldendoodle was left tied to the JetBlue ticket counter, police officer Skeeter Black adopted the dog into his new forever home. The officer and his family were already looking for a goldendoodle, and had already been approved for adoption and completed a home check.
“Following the mandatory hold period, the rescue organization selected them to provide JetBlue with the safe and loving home he deserves,” the department said on Instagram. “What began as a heartbreaking act of abandonment has turned into a powerful example of compassion, teamwork, and community partnership.”
Photo: Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
JetBlue's story might have had a happy ending, but every year nearly six million dogs and cats come into shelters across the U.S. - with large numbers unable to find forever homes and some having to be euthanized.
This issue is due to potential guardians preferring to shop from breeders and pet stores, leaving less fortunate animals with a longer wait for a forever home. To help end the animal overpopulation crisis, those ready to welcome a dog or cat into their lives must adopt from rescue centers, while also taking care to spay and neuter their companion animals.
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