CHICAGO — The mysterious deaths this week of seven puppies shortly after landing on a plane in Chicago has rattled the nerves of animal lovers. On Wednesday, investigators were looking at factors ranging from heatstroke to carbon-monoxide poisoning to pre-existing health problems in connection with a shipment of 14 puppies inside the cargo hold of an American Airlines MD-80 plane from Tulsa, Okla., to Chicago on Tuesday.
The dogs, which were sent by an unidentified commercial dog-breeding operation in Oklahoma, were to make connections at O’Hare to flights that would take them to pet stores in other states. Only seven of the 14 dogs were deemed “airworthy,” and they were placed on the second flight, American spokeswoman Mary Frances Fagan said.
Five puppies died at O’Hare, and two died either while being taken to veterinarians or after arriving at clinics, Fagan said.
“The animals were alive when they came off the plane,” she said.
But airline baggage handlers taking the puppies to a holding area for animals observed that some of the dogs “looked lethargic,” Fagan said. “People were trying to cool them off.”
A variety of breeds were in the shipment, she said, adding that necropsy reports on the dead animals won’t be available for a week.
