The story of Bluebell, a rescue dog who was mistakenly sent to Saudi Arabia instead of to her family in Tennessee, is a heartbreaking one.
The family, who was moving from London to Tennessee, discovered their beloved dog was missing when they arrived at the Nashville International Airport and were given the wrong dog, according to a news report.
“They said she wasn’t in Nashville, and they said their best guess was that she was in Saudi Arabia,” Madison Miller told WSMV, referring to her 5-year-old pet named Bluebell.
After waiting approximately an hour for news, airport staff finally sent a photo of Bluebell in her crate and confirmed that the poor pup was, in fact, in Saudi Arabia.
For three days, Miller and her husband anxiously waited for their dog to return home. However, when they were finally reunited, their dog was no longer the same pup they remembered.
Bluebell had endured three flights and 63 hours of confusion- enough to make any person insane, let alone a poor confused pup! The couple said their dog had changed into a completely different dog.
“I anticipated kind of like the reunion you see on YouTube,” Miller said. “Like she comes out of the crate, she’s wagging and licking your face. It was the opposite.”
Instead, Bluebell made a run for it. “We had to go and grab her because she was so horrified, and that’s when we knew something was wrong,” Miller said.
Since settling into her new home in Tennessee, Bluebell’s issues have continued, Miller said. Reportedly, Bluebell will often sit alone and cry and has even chewed through a door.
“They said this has never happened before. We don’t even understand how it could happen because there are so many safety checks in place,” Miller said and has demanded answers.
British Airways forwarded a request for comment to the cargo company, IAG Cargo, who apologized “for the recent error that occurred during Bluebell’s trip to Nashville.”
“We take the responsibility of caring for people’s loved animals seriously and are investigating how the redirection happened,” the company said in a statement to WSMV. “Whilst Bluebell’s route was longer than it should have been, we ensured she was on the first flight back to Nashville from London Heathrow.”
The company also stated that Bluebell “received refreshments frequently and had time outside to stretch her legs,” which supposedly included regular walks and eight hours with the team at the Heathrow Animal Reception center who cared for her.
“Despite these measures, we understand that this has been an upsetting situation for Bluebell and her owners and remain in contact with them to resolve the situation,” IAG Cargo stated.
