Ukraine International Airlines flight cargo hold was being emptied in Toronto; 38 puppies dead from apparent suffocation.
Ukraine Airlines flight #PS1241 landed at Pearson International Airport on June 13, carrying 500 puppies in the cargo hold that were meant to be sold in the Toronto area, according to a statement by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).
“There were around 500 total, 200 French bulldogs included, that were taken for transportation on the Borispol-Toronto flight, including 300 cages, which meant some cages contained two dogs,” the source said.
The temperatures at the time of loading was over 30 C, and the puppies were visibly suffering according to eyewitness accounts, with multiple crates being placed on top of each other, and some even being encased in plastic.
A handler loading the aircraft in Ukraine said that many of the dogs were put into cages without the ability to even move, and without air circulation. The pallets were then transported into the lower compartment of the aircraft, where air circulates very poorly.
A video shared by a baggage handler at the time of loading shows carts with a large pile of crates containing live animals stacked high.
This would be in direct violation of the International Air Transport Association guidelines which state that each animal should have enough space to turn around while standing, to sit and lie in a natural position.
Ukraine International Airlines has yet to comment, however, an email by the airline was sent to freight forwarding agents read “Be informed that airline UIA, starting from 19.06, 2020, have temporary embargo for live animals on aircrafts B767 until further notification.” This is the same aircraft type that landed in Toronto.
