I've heard the expression that working on the ramp at an airport is "like working in a fish bowl." Everybody sees what you are doing, and you never know who might be watching. This morning, a Twitter user snapped a photo of a pet kennel, allegedly containing a dog, sitting unprotected from the rain.
In their response to Barbara, United brushed the blame off to their PetSafe program.
United's response understandably sparked off a lot of angry responses, many of which were vulgar and accusatory, suggesting United doesn't care about animals.
Needless to say, mistreatment of animals hits a nerve with anyone who has a soul, and this will haunt United for a while. It's unlikely that the weather was clear when the animal was dropped off, and even if the rain had started post drop-off, the employees at the gate should have been aware of the animal out there, because it would appear on the flight manifest.
The right thing for United to do would have been to address the issue with remorse. Something along the lines of, "We're very disappointed to see this, and we're looking into having the dog moved immediately."