Feces-covered hamsters and chinchillas arrive after 4-day Air Canada delay

A pet store owner is calling on Air Canada to improve its animal shipping policies after 30 of her fish died in a Halifax airport en route to Gander, N.L., this weekend.

Terri-AnnCrisby had ordered two geckos, two chinchillas, two hamsters and 40 fish from Montreal-based supplier Mirdo Importations. She was going to sell them in her Pet Central store on Roe Avenue in Gander.

They were supposed to be on an overnight flight from Montreal Wednesday but were delayed during a connection in Halifax and only arrived in Newfoundland in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The animals arrived exhausted and covered in feces, she said. The hamsters buried themselves in their hay bedding and the geckos hid in their caves.

Bumped from flight after flight

The days of delays were made worse because the communication was so confusing, Crisby said.

"Every representative I spoke to would tell me, 'Yep, they'll be on the next flight,'" she said. "And then I would be happy thinking that they're coming on the next flight, that I've gotten somewhere. And they didn't show up."

She said Air Canada staff told her the animals were bumped from flight after flight for reasons ranging from weight restrictions to weather delays.

In an email statement, Air Canada spokeswoman Angela Mah said "extreme weather in Atlantic Canada and the peak travel period prior to Christmas" caused the original delay in connecting in Halifax to the flight to Gander.

6 flights missed

Crisby was told there were six different flights the animals were supposed to be put on, but none worked out. The animals were stored in a heated warehouse at Halifax Stanfield International Airport. For each flight they were moved closer to the airplanes four hours before boarding.

A manager from a Halifax-based Pet Smart store visited the animals to feed them, as they were sent on the trip only prepared for the overnight flight. The animals and fish could not be taken out of their crates during this time.

All of that transportation took a toll on the animals, Crisby said. A veterinarian is scheduled to assess the animals Monday. The mammals and geckos seem to be doing fine now, but most of the fish were dead upon arrival, she said. Crisby said she is not sure whether the rest of the fish will live.

"I was trying everything in my power to get them here as soon as I can. I just felt so helpless," Crisby said. "I think [Air Canada staff] even knew me by first-name basis because I was calling so much."

Air Canada says it takes care with animals

Crisby said she believes her animals were put on the flight Saturday only because she had gone with her complaint to her local radio station, which called Air Canada.

Air Canada says it takes care with transporting "live cargo."

"We work with local kennels to help care for animals while in transit," Mah wrote in an email. "We are grateful that a local pet store was able to care for their well-being."

Mah also said they only have a record of moving goldfish and crickets.

She said suppliers shipping the animals must sign a waiver and package the animals to according to industry standards to withstand cold and "any potential irregular operations."

Mirdo Importations of Montreal said the animals were properly packed in containers designed to last for 36 to 48 hours, but that the packing was not meant to sustain the animals for longer.

Concerns for future shipments

Crisby said she did not purchase crickets, and she doesn't know why Air Canada would have no record of the other animals in the shipment. She said staff she spoke to who saw the containers were aware there were chinchillas and other creatures inside.

Crisby said she's worried poor communication on Air Canada's part will affect future shipments of living creatures.

"The only thing I want out of this is to make sure any future problems will be corrected," Crisby said. "Make pets priority, not people's underwear and pants."

Crisby said she has few options for shipping in animals and fish to sell at her store because of Gander's location. She thought the overnight flight to Gander would be less stressful on the animals than picking them up in St. John's, which was another option.