A recently moved Australian is desperately seeking a resolution for his dog that went missing at Melbourne Airport on AeroPets’ watch.
Jason Whatnall, 35, has packed up his life to move to Swansea, Wales to be with his partner Nick.
On Monday, March 18, the couple dropped their Jack Russell, Milo, off to international pet transport company AeroPets, in what looms as the final day spent with their canine companion.
Mr Whatnall is trying to remain positive, but feels that AeroPets should have taken a more careful and thorough approach when transporting Milo.
“I’m not looking to name, blame and shame the company because for the past 14 days they’ve had a team of people searching around the clock,” he said.
“It’s not clear exactly what happened, but it was done in an open area without closed gates. I think there weren’t real processes in place.
“I’ve been told Milo escaped from his crate while a dog handler was trying to put a leash on him, he became distressed and nipped the worker and ran off.
“It’s very out of character for Milo, he is usually such a gentle, friendly dog.”
Mr Whatnall said that they have recently been alerted of a sighting of Milo from somebody in the Tullamarine area so his hope remains high, but the couple are desperate to have Milo join them in the UK.
“He is a little ball of energy and loves an adventure, so while we’re stressing he is probably loving the freedom, having his last adventure in Australia so to speak,” he laughed.
A spokesperson for AeroPets told other media they have been working tirelessly to assist in the search for Milo.
“We have handed out hundreds of flyers in the area to neighbourhoods and businesses to assist and put food and cameras out in the night to help and have engaged social media groups,” the spokesperson said.
“We have also flown in extra staff from Brisbane to assist on the ground search.”
“We advised the owners what happened immediately who came in and helped with the search for a few hours. The owners of Milo then took a flight out of Australia before finding Milo.
“We will continue to assist the community in the search for Milo.”
The spokesperson also said the company was not made aware that Milo was scared of people and vehicles.
If you have seen Milo, call or text at 0432 222 474.
