United Airlines Apologizes After Dog Dies On Plane

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — A Houston family is seeking answers after receiving the heartbreaking news that their dog died during a flight from Houston to San Francisco this week. Lulu, a 5-year-old King Charles spaniel, was in the cargo hold of the plane.

The Rasmussen family said in a Facebook post that Lulu had been cleared to fly by their family vet.

United has air-conditioned cargo holds for pets during flights. However, the Rasmussens report that their plane sat on the tarmac in Houston for two hours before taking off for San Francisco.

In a statement, United said it is looking into the incident. The airline told ABC13 in Houston:

"We are so sorry to learn of Lulu's passing and have reached out to our customer to offer our condolences and assistance. We are deeply upset any time an animal suffers an injury while traveling with us and especially grieved in the rare instance that one passes away. We are conducting a thorough review of this incident."

However, U.S. Department of Transportation statistics show that from 2014-16, nine of the 26 pets that died during transport were on United planes, more than any other U.S. carrier. Unfortunately, there have been more cases reported this year.

Back in February, a dog that was flown on United from Detroit to Portland died after an unexpected 20 hour layover in Chicago. The layover happened because the large dog's crate didn't fit on the plane from Chicago to Portland and had to wait until the next large plane flew there.

Then in April, a three-foot-long giant rabbit died while traveling from London to Chicago. The animal was also in the cargo hold of the plane. The rabbit was expected to outgrow his record-setting, 4-foot 4-inch father to become the world's largest.

The animal deaths continue United's disastrous public relations year. In April, a United passenger was violently dragged from a flight at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport. He suffered a concussion and a broken nose. The ticketed passenger was removed to make room for a United employee.