PropertyValue
?:author
?:datePublished
  • 2018-02-09 (xsd:date)
?:headline
  • Did Spirit Airlines Tell a Customer to Flush Her Hamster Down the Toilet? (en)
?:inLanguage
?:itemReviewed
?:mentions
?:reviewBody
  • On 8 February 2018, reports surfaced that Spirit Airlines had told a young woman in November 2017 into flush her emotional support hamster down a toilet in order to board her flight. The Miami Herald reported: Aldecosea says that she checked in with the hamster without issue, until a Spirit airlines employee chased her down and told her that rodents were not allowed on board. The airline switched her to a later flight to give her time to make other arrangements, but Aldecosea says that she found herself with few options. The bus ride, she says, would have been too long (a quick search of the Greyhound website showed a typical ride clocking in at 25 hours, and it's conceivable that it could have been longer during the holiday season). Aldecosea says that during these harried discussions, a Spirit employee suggested she let the hamster free outside or flush it down the toilet. Spirit Airlines has firmly denied that their employee told Aldecosea to flush or release her pet. The airline concedes that an employee told Aldecosea over the phone that the hamster would be allowed on the flight, but says that the employee was mistaken and their policy does not allow rodents. At first glance Spirit Airlines' online written policies appear at first glance to allow for an emotional support hamster. However, clicking through to additional policies brings up a page with a list that includes this bullet point: A version of the policies cached in September 2015 did not stipulate that those specific animals were not permitted, but it is not clear when the page changed to include that information. We contacted Spirit Airlines for further information about the hamster controversy, but have not yet received a response. However, Spirit Airlines spokesperson Derek Dombrowski denied that an employee told Aaldecosea to flush the animal, both in an interview with the Miami Herald, and in later statement: USA Today spoke to Aldeosea's lawyer Adam Goodman, who, according to the article, acknowledges there isn't audio or video proof showing a Spirit employee suggesting she flush her hamster, but he believes his client. Adlecosea says she has a note from her doctor certifying Pebbles as an emotional support animal, and that she obtained the hamster to help her cope with a growth on her neck. The growth turned out to be benign, but still had to be surgically removed, and she was on her way to Florida to undergo surgery when the alleged incident occurred. (en)
?:reviewRating
rdf:type
?:url