NEED TO KNOW

• Thousands of people applied to adopt a dog after the pup’s owner abandoned him at Harry Reid International Airport in Nevada on Feb. 2

• The dog, named JetBlue, is set to be adopted by one of the police officers who responded to the airport incident

• Retriever Rescue of Las Vegas encourages those who applied to adopt JetBlue to adopt one of the other dogs in its care

After a dog was abandoned at the airport by his owner, thousands of people from around the world applied to adopt the pet.

The story of the dog, identified as an “approximately 2-year-old golden doodle/mini poodle,” gained attention on social media after the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) detailed how his owner abandoned him, including footage of the events, in a Feb. 18 news release.

The dog’s owner — whom police did not identify — left him tied to a baggage sizer at the JetBlue ticket counter at Harry Reid International Airport in Paradise, Nev., late in the evening on Feb. 2. Officers with the LVMPD reported to the scene at approximately 11:39 p.m. local time.

According to police, “airline staff advised the dog’s owner she was required to complete online documentation to travel with the animal as a service dog,” and “when the required paperwork was not completed, the passenger was denied a boarding pass.”

“She then left the dog behind and proceeded through the airport to the departure gate,” the LVMPD said.

Officers later located the dog’s owner at a gate within the airport, where they confronted her about the alleged abandonment, footage shows.

“I’m going to throw my bags down because I’m exhausted,” the unidentified woman said in bodycam footage included in the news release. An officer then responded, “No, what we’re gonna do is we’re going to walk you back to where your dog’s at and give you a citation, because you left your dog at the ticket counter.”

Asked why she left the dog, the owner told police officers that JetBlue would not allow her to fly with the pet, which she claimed had a tracking device — “implying it was acceptable to leave the animal behind and it would return to her,” the LVMPD said. She later became “hostile,” police said.

The owner was arrested and booked for animal abandonment, as well as resisting arrest, according to the LVMPD.

Meanwhile, the dog — who has since been named JetBlue — entered Animal Protective Services’ custody and, after 10 days without a peep from his owner, was transferred to Retriever Rescue of Las Vegas, a local nonprofit organization.

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After his story went viral, JetBlue was met with an “outpouring of love,” the rescue said in an update on Facebook. “This sweet boy is incredible. Truly incredible,” the rescue wrote. “And after everything he’s been through, the thought of him ever experiencing abandonment again has us on very high alert. We will be extremely intentional in choosing his forever family. He deserves stability. Security. Commitment. A lifetime promise.”

And there are plenty of homes to choose from. The pup has received more than 2,400 adoption applications, the rescue told FOX5 Vegas — though he is going home with one of the police officers who responded to the airport.

The officer — who already had a pre-approved application and completed home check with the rescue — will reunite with JetBlue and bring the dog home to his family on Saturday, Feb. 21, FOX5 Vegas reported.

Meanwhile, Retriever Rescue of Las Vegas is urging those who applied to adopt JetBlue from around the world — there were applicants from London, the Virgin Islands and more — to give another dog a forever home, according to the outlet. And for local applicants, there are 40 other dogs currently in the nonprofit’s care.

“There is only one JetBlue,” the rescue told FOX5 Vegas. “But there are so many others still in need.”

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