A HEARTBROKEN pet owner has shamed an airline after his golden retriever died when he was sent on an eight-hour flight by mistake.
Beloved Joca was supposed to travel from São Paulo, Brazil, to Sinop, Mato Grosso state, on a flight that should have taken two-and-a-half hours.
But instead, the poor pooch was put on a plane to Fortaleza, Ceara state, and reportedly left unattended for hours before he was flown back to São Paulo.
Joca’s owner João Fantazzini claims his dog was kept in a cargo hold under the scorching heat inside a cramped cage.
The four-year-old dog reportedly stayed there for eight hours with limited access to water, he claimed.
When he learned of the error, João went back to São Paulo, where he waited for Joca to arrive – only to discover him dead.
The enraged owner and his family blame Brazilian airline GOL for the pup’s death.
He told The Sun: “Nobody gave me any support or anything there. I didn’t know what was happening.
“At the time I think I freaked out, because I started pacing from one side to the other in desperation.
“I ran out and I got into the cargo and I saw his box there in the corner and that’s when I saw he was gone.
“It was the biggest shock of my life. They killed my love.”
In an Instagram video, João was seen crying in front of the crate where Joca lay dead.
A tiny water bottle can be seen attached to the cage’s door.
João believes Joca died from a cardiorespiratory arrest – but the exact cause has not yet been confirmed.
The pooch had a vet’s “fitness to fly” certificate for a two-and-a-half hour flight.
João was moving states because of a new job, and wanted to take his furry pal with him to start a new life together.
He said: “The company asked me what my non-negotiables were for moving to Mato Grosso. For me, I could leave everything and take just Joca.
“There was no other option. I couldn’t leave my dog, he was part of me, he was my son, so wherever I went I would take him.”
Nothing will bring the love of my life back
João Fantazzini
João said he wasn’t worried when he dropped Joca at the cargo hold at São Paulo’s Guarulhos airport, but he was upset at the thought of leaving his pup alone.
“I felt a lot of pain letting him go when I saw them closing him inside the box,” he said.
“But at least I knew I was going to meet him and it was a quick flight.”
João’s nightmare began as soon as he landed in Sinop in Mato Grosso state.
As he was waiting for his luggage the baggage claim, a staff member reportedly approached him “saying there was a problem”.
João said: “When I found out he had been sent to the other side of the country I started to panic.
“But the employee told me he was fine and gave me a return ticket to meet him in São Paulo.”
After landing back in Guarulhos, a GOL staff member reportedly escorted João off the plane and took him directly to the airline’s warehouse.
He said: “After an hour-and-a-half of waiting, the general manager of GOL finally appeared. She said that Joca arrived but didn’t feel well on the flight.
Animals are lives too, but they treated my dog like nothing. Absolutely nothing.
João Fantazzini
“And right then and there, I felt like I was being punched in the chest – I literally felt an impact, it was almost physical.
“I asked, ‘but is he okay?’ She did not answer me.
“That’s when I asked ‘did he die?’ The woman just lowered her head and said yes.
“It was a series of very grave errors on GOL’s part. They should have taken him to a refrigerated area, a place that has air conditioning, and taken him out of the box.
“But they didn’t do any of that. They did what they thought was best for them, for the sake of money.”
The devastated dog dad is now moving mountains to pass a federal law in the hopes of protecting other pets in travel and spare their owners from a horror heartbreak.
João said: “I hope that with this law, my case and Joca’s becomes the last death. It cannot keep going like this. It’s shameful.
“Animals are lives too, but they treated my dog like nothing. Absolutely nothing.
“Nothing will bring the love of my life back. So this law will come out because I will not rest until it does.”
It was the biggest shock of my life. They killed my love.
João Fantazzini
The Sun has approached GOL for comment.
In a statement, the airline said they “deeply regret” Joca’s death.
They said: “GOL deeply regrets the incident involving the dog Joca and sympathises with its owner’s pain.
“The company states that the dog Joca was supposed to fly to Sinop (OPS) on flight 1480 on 22/04, departing from Guarulhos (GRU), however, due to an operational failure, the animal was boarded on a flight to Fortaleza (FOR).”
They added: “We empathise with the suffering of Joca’s owner.
“We understand his pain and deeply regret the loss of his pet.”
Following the death, the airline suspended its transportation service of dogs and cats in cargo holds or aircraft cabins for 30 days.
According to GOL, the suspension, which will last until May 23, will allow them to fully focus on investigating Joca’s death.
