Dog Spending 20 Hours in Carrier in Airplane's Baggage Hold Sparks Backlash

A dog owner has responded to the online backlash to a recent video showing her corgi emerging from a 20-hour flight spent in a carrier in the airplane's baggage hold.

Earlier this month, Rebecca Chang left South Korea to go live with her husband in his native Croatia. In doing so, she left behind friends, family and the life she once knew.

But one thing she was determined not to leave behind was her beloved dog, ChowChow. "We met in Seoul in January 2020," Chang told Newsweek. "I found her in a trash can near my university's hospital. She was around 1 to 2 months old and was really skinny and dirty."

At first, Chang was unsure about adopting the corgi. "But one day when she heard me calling her name and running towards me, I decided I wanted to."

After three happy years in South Korea, Chang made the brave decision to move to Croatia and take ChowChow with her.

Transporting an animal abroad is difficult at the best of times, but it's a particularly complex process if moving from a country outside of the European Union to one within the EU.

The process has to begin four months before the planned travel date. Dogs traveling this way must be microchipped before receiving a rabies vaccination, according to the European Commission.

A titer serology report, based on a series of blood tests, must be completed to prove your dog is no longer susceptible to rabies. An export license or health certificate is also required. Each of these procedures must be completed one at a time before the date of travel.

Chang completed all of the necessary steps. All that was left was for ChowChow to make the 20-hour journey to her new home.

Unfortunately, airline rules dictated that ChowChow's weight meant she was unable to sit with Chang in the airplane cabin and instead had to spend the flight in a carrier put into the hold of the plane. That's where the trouble started.

After arriving in Croatia, Chang decided to make a video of the moment she was reunited with ChowChow as her carrier came through on the conveyor, then posted it to TikTok.

Chang estimates she spent about $950 to bring ChowChow with her. But when she saw her on the conveyor, she knew it was the right thing to do.

"I can't stop crying and my heart melted because of our brave little girl," she wrote alongside the video.

So far, the clip has been viewed over 2 million times. But many commenters reacted angrily, in a way that has been seen before on social media.

"It's really cute but the cage it's in for a 20 hour flight is really small. They must [have] been really cramped in that," one concerned viewer wrote.

"I just couldn't," a second added. "I'd rather go on a boat and take them even if it took months." A third said: "Some animals actually don't survive the trips this way. It's a fact."

Other viewers were supportive. "Everyone is judging you, but you did what you thought was best for your family," wrote one.

Another said: "This is sadly the reality of pet travel, it's not their fault and did everything they could to make it safer."

Commenting on the response, Chang said: "I respect that different people will have different opinions. It was a hard decision for us, but I think it was also a right decision."

She went on: "But our dog's experience has already made us feel very bad, and it makes me feel even more sad when people accuse me of self-righteousness without doing a detailed research. I hope that one day airlines and countries will work together to change some pet flying policies so that all pets can have a better flying experience."

Despite the negative comments, Chang said she has no regrets about bringing ChowChow with her on the plane, noting that steps were taken to make it as smooth a ride as possible.

"Before taking her to that plane, we did a lot of training for her," she said. "Two weeks before leaving, we let her in the carrier for a few hours a day, and we also played the sound of the plane to her. Sometimes she would sleep in the carrier. I also put my clothes in the carrier to make her feel like I'm with her all the time."

In the end, it was all worth it. "She has so much fun every day," Chang said. "We have a big garden to let her run, she has new friends which are my husband's cats. We took her to explore different cities and beaches. The country is very pet-friendly, and the smile on her face tells us it was all worth it."

Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to [email protected] with some details about your best friend and they could appear in our Pet of the Week lineup.