Heartwarming moment a Dominican Republic woman is reunited with her six-year-old dog that was missing for three weeks after it was lost by Delta Airlines at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport – world’s busiest airport
- Maia, a six-year-old Chihuahua from the Dominican Republic, was reunited with her owner Paula Rodríguez on Monday in Santo Domingo
- The family pet was lost by Delta Airlines at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in August
- The dog was found Saturday morning in a cargo area facility and was taken to a local vet, who found her in good health
A Dominican Republic woman has been reunited with Chihuahua three weeks after Delta Airlines lost it at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.
Footage of the reunion showed the moment Paula Rodriguez ran up to Maia at Las Américas International Airport in Santo Domingo on Monday.
‘Maia arrived with painkillers for the flight but from the moment she arrived home she instantly started walking,’ Rodríguez shared on Instagram Story post that showed her embracing her six-year-old adopted pet.
‘And she is in I N C R E D I B L E spirits,’ she exclaimed.
Paula Rodríguez hugs Maia, her six-year-old Chihuahua, who she was reunited with Monday in the Dominican Republic, three weeks after Delta Airlines staff lost the pet while transporting her to a terminal gate at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
Paul Rodríguez’s sister, Daniela Rodríguez, hold Maia on Tuesday, a day after the family was reunited with the six-year-old rescue pet
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport said on social media that Maia was spotted hiding in the ‘North Cargo facilities’ on Saturday.
A pet volunteer who had been helping in the search saw Maia and got on her hands and knees and pulled her to safety.
The six-year-old rescue pet was taken to a local veterinarian for a check-up and was found to be in good health before flying back with Rodríguez’s mother.
Rodriguez’s plight began August 18 when she and her six-year-old adopted pet boarded a flight from Santo Domingo to San Francisco for a vacation.
Upon arriving in Atlanta for a connecting flight, U.S. Customs and Border Protection informed her that the tourist visa was not in accordance with guidelines and denied her entry to the U.S.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport said on social media that Maia was found in the ‘North Cargo facilities’ on Saturday and took her to a vet for a regular exam before reuniting her with her family from the Dominican Republic
Paula Rodríguez (right) and her mother share a special moment with Maia at their Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic home
Paul Rodríguez posed with Maia for a photo Tuesday, a day after the Chihuahua was flown from Atlanta to the Dominican Republic
Maia, a six-year-old Chihuahua from the Dominican Republic, was found safely at a cargo facility next to Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Saturday
Border officials informed her that she was going to have to stay at a detention facility until her next flight and that under law she was not allowed to be with her dog at the world’s busiest airport.
Rodríguez was told not to worry because Maia was going to be placed at a Delta Airlines facility that were trained to handle pets, according to CNN.
She was escorted back to the airport the following morning expecting to fly with Maia on a 10:20 am flight to the Santo Domingo when she learned while waiting at the departure gate that her dog was missing.
Delta Airlines moved Rodríguez to another flight, albeit to Punta Cana, a nearly four-hour drive from the Dominican Capital, as she waited out for Maia’s arrival, thinking it was just a minor error by the aviation company’s staff.
However, there were still no signs of Maia as the gate for the Punta Cana flight was set to close and she was instructed by border agents that she could not be in the country for more than 24 hours without a valid visa.
Rodríguez flew back without Maia and was contacted by Delta Airlines two days later that the dog had escaped from the kennel and made her way to the runway.
She initially offered a $1,000 reward that was later elevated to $7,000.
DailyMail.com reached out to Delta Airlines for comment.
Source: Read Full Article