Family's Dog Headed To Kansas Mistakenly Flown To Japan

A Kansas family's dog is being returned to them after the pooch was mistakenly sent on a flight to Japan and a dog bound for Japan ended up with the family. The mix-up happened as the family traveled from Oregon to Kansas City, Missouri on Tuesday.

Kara and Joseph Swindle, along with their children, are moving from Oregon to Wichita, Kansas. The family told KCTV-5 that Kara Swindle flew into Kansas City with the kids on Tuesday on a United flight. When they went to the United cargo facility to pick up their dog, a 10-year-old German Shepherd named Irgo, there was a Great Dane awaiting the family.

The Great Dane was supposed to fly to Japan but somehow Irgo was sent in its place. Swindle told KCTV-5 that the airline originally said Irgo might be required to be quarantined in Japan for up to two weeks because he was on an international flight.

The pets arrived safely and United says it is arranging to have them returned as soon as possible.

"An error occurred during connections in Denver for two pets sent to the wrong destinations," United Airlines said in a statement. "We have notified our customers that their pets have arrived safely and will arrange to return the pets to them as soon as possible. We apologize for this mistake and are following up with the vendor kennel where they were kept overnight to understand what happened."

Swindle told KCTV-5 she just hopes that Irgo is okay.

“At this point, all I can do is be hopeful that my dog is going to be okay and return safely," Swindle told the news channel. "I don’t know what else to do at this point. I can’t cry anymore. I’ve cried too much.”

The incident comes just a day after a dog aboard a United flight from Houston to New York died after reportedly being made to fly in the overhead bin. A passenger brought the dog onboard in a TSA-approved carrier but was ordered to store it in the bin by a flight attendant, according to news reports. The airline said it accepted full responsibility for the dog's in-flight death.

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