Stowaway Chihuahua Found: TSA Adds Adorable Dog To List Of Notable Finds
A stowaway Chihuahua found in a woman’s luggage is making headlines to start the week. According to Gawker, a small Chihuahua was found in the luggage of a woman preparing to leave from LaGuardia Airport in New York. The Transportation Security Administration shared a photo of the dog on Instagram, and it is now forever included in their list of odd things they find in the checked luggage of people flying from airports around the country.
One identified woman was headed to Los Angeles on March 3, and she had checked her hard suitcase in before heading to the gate. As the luggage made its way through the airport’s system, an alarm went off, and TSA took the piece of luggage for inspection. The alarm goes off when something odd is found.
The TSA agents did not to find expect the 7-year-old Chihuahua inside the woman’s suitcase though. Lisa Farbstein, a spokesperson for TSA, spoke about the find with the media, according to NBC News.
“She was just as surprised as we were. The woman said that the dog must have climbed into the suitcase and curled up in the clothing while she was packing for her trip. The officer was very surprised to see the dog.”
The TSA agents at LaGuardia worked to find the owner the found pup, and they reunited the pair. The woman called her husband, and he came to the airport to retrieve the naughty stowaway dog. After the dog was safely back at home, the woman continued on her way to Los Angeles via American Airlines.
The Transportation Security Administration did have a bit of fun when they shared about this find on Instagram. The caption for the social media made sure to remind passengers to check their luggage for stowaway pets.
“Ay, #Chihuahua! It’s always important to double check your bags before traveling, especially to make sure your Chihuahua hasn’t stowed away inside one of them. That’s exactly what happened this week at #NewYork’s #LaGuardia (#LGA) Airport.”
One might think stowaways are not common on airplanes, but there have been a few cases of stowaway humans sneaking onto flights in recent months. According to a previous Inquisitr report, one woman, Marilyn Hartman, has earned the title of “serial stowaway” for her successful sneaky attempts.
The woman is usually caught by authorities after her trips, and she was caught back in February after a flight from Minnesota to Jacksonville, Florida.
“This time, Hartman, a 63-year-old California woman, was able to somehow sneak her way through Minnesota airport security, hop the flight to Florida, disembark, and go check into someone else’s hotel room! It is believed Hartman rode a shuttle bus from the airport to the rather posh Omni Amelia Island Plantation Hotel. Once there, she allegedly put the same type of serial stowaway trickery she uses for free flights and received the room key for a $300 villa.”
In the case of the stowaway Chihuahua, no charges were filed. He is back at home where he belongs after a bit of excitement. His discovery will be something that the TSA agents at LaGuardia Airport can talk about for some time.
What do you think of this stowaway Chihuahua? Has your pet ever tried to sneak into your luggage?
[Photo: TSA Instagram]
