An owner traveled with his golden retriever named Er Mao on May 29th. As a result of the animal’s size and weight, he was not able to travel in the passenger cabin. The dog was in a shipping box inside the cargo area of the China Eastern Airlines flight.

When the owner arrived at Wuhan Tianhe International Airport in China after the flight, the local staff gave him his dog. However, the animal was badly injured.

After waiting over an hour for his dog, the owner says the dog suffered serious injuries to his eyes and body.

The animal is believed to have been mistreated by airport officials. The information that the owner received was that the dog escaped from its transport box and was rescued by the airport staff while still at the place of origin, which caused a 40-minute delay for the flight’s departure. However, the assumption is that local officials have used “excessive force” to retrieve the dog and put it back in the cage.

According to an airport statement, eight team members spent more than 40 minutes chasing the runaway animal before putting it back in its transport case. The airport also said that its team had to react to the “emergency situation” in order to prevent damage to employees and passengers and apologized to the owner for the incident with the dog.

A veterinarian informed the dog’s owner that the animal is receiving medical treatment, but is not at risk. Moreover, he said he would need more information about the case and could take legal action.

In order to determine who is responsible for the dog’s escape and injuries, an investigation is being undertaken.