Taking Pets on Flights? These 5 Incidents on Airlines May Want You to Change Your Mind

United Airlines stirred another controversy involving transporting pets when one of their flight attendants put a pet in the overhead locker resulting in its death. The French bulldog named Kokito died during a flight from Houston to New York on Monday. Eleven-year-old Sophie Ceballos, who got the dog said that she received the pet as a gift on her birthday from her mother. The airline later took responsibility for the tragedy and said they are thoroughly investigating the case. This is not the first time the airlines got into a stir involving animals, there have been multiple instances when different airlines grabbed headlines for similar issues. Reportedly, the dog was kept in an overhead bin following instructions from the airline's attendant.

A United Airlines statement regarding the issue read, "We assume full responsibility for this tragedy and express our deepest condolences to the family and are committed to supporting them. We are thoroughly investigating what occurred to prevent this from ever happening again. Pets should never be placed in the overhead bin."

2 Hamster flushed down a toilet

Spirit Airline last month asked a college student in Florida to flush her hamster down an airport toilet. Belen Aldecosea had called the airlines twice before flying home from her college in Baltimore to confirm if she could carry her pet hamster on the flight. However, they refused when she arrived with the animal. She had to flush the hamster down the airport toilet on an airline employee's suggestion after worrying she would die a painful death if released outside.

3 Peacock denied entry

Earlier this year, a woman was barred from taking her "emotional support peacock" on a United Airlines flight. The woman at Newark Liberty International Airport was told that the bird did not meet their guidelines. Pictures of the peacock perched on a bag trolley at the airport had then gone viral on social media. After six hours at the airport, the bird and the woman took the road.

4 Girl injured by a dog

A child onboard a Southwest Airlines flight was injured by an emotional support dog. A spokesman for the airline said that as the girl approached the dog, the animal scrapped her forehead with its teeth. She was treated by paramedics and cleared to return to the flight.

5 Delta changes pet policy

Following an increase in complaints received in 2017 than 2016, Delta Airlines changed their pet policy behavior. For the safety of all their passengers, Delta is now asking passengers wanting to fly with animals to provide more information about their pets. As of March 1, passengers have to provide proof of their animal's vaccinations or other health records at least 48 hours before their flight. They will also have to sign a voucher before boarding the plane stating their pets can and will behave on the flight. Some of the passenger complaints the airlines received included reports of animals peeing, pooping and biting.

However, Brad Hibbard, Director of Training at both the Guide Dog Foundation and America's VetDogs do not completely agree to this new rule. He says it is unfair for trained and certified service animals. Hibbard told to PEOPLE, "There are issues there for our graduates and graduates from other assistance dog programs. You’re making things onerous for them. They have to upload documents for Delta for their trip 48 hours prior and provide all this paperwork that they have to keep with them."

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 15, 2018 12:35 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).