Mother dog dies in fall from cargo hold of small plane
Posted: May 3, 2015 - 4:00am

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) -- A mother dog has died after falling from the cargo hold of a small plane that had just taken off from Lexington's Blue Grass Airport, but her five puppies are safe. Pilot Rameio Gonzales was in tears as he told WLEX-TV (http://bit.ly/1c6eWaA ) he is a volunteer pilot for a rescue operation called "Pilots for Paws." Gonzales said he felt a rush of air just after take-off and realized a cargo door just above and behind the wing must have come open. He landed the plane to find that the five puppies were still safely inside. He said the mother dog was wearing a bandana that may have gotten caught in the latch. The puppies were being taken to Canada to be trained as service dogs.