back to article Post-a-puppy woman hit with cruelty charges

A Minneapolis woman has been hit with animal cruelty charges after she tried to relocate a puppy to Atlanta, via airmail. Stacey Champion told post office workers in downtown Minneapolis to be particularly careful with the tightly sealed package she submitted for sending as a birthday gift to a relative in Georgia. Champion …

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  1. The Indomitable Gall
    Unhappy

    Airmail...?

    Jeezy peeps,

    What with the temperature the hold of a plane drops to in flight, you'd be left with what a Yank would have to call a pupsicle...!

    1. Charles Manning

      Crap

      Pets are routinely ferried in cargo holds along with post etc.

    2. Chad Larson
      FAIL

      airplane hold

      The cargo hold in a commercial airliner has the same air as the passenger compartment. In fact, there are ventilation holes in the floor of the passenger compartment to share the air. It's too much trouble to try to keep them separate, even if there were a good reason to do so.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    A title is required

    Don't bother with prison, just put her in a tightly sealed package and stick her in a warehouse somewhere.

    1. Code Monkey
      Thumb Up

      Yes

      Via airmail, of course

    2. Matthew 3

      RE: A title is required

      And after she's been put in the warehouse:

      "We have top men working on it right now."

      "Who?"

      "Top Men".

  3. Elmer Phud
    Happy

    Velvets

    Thanks, even without watching the vid I can hear 'Straight into Waldo Jeffer's head'.

    If she wanted to post the puppy she ought to have used a larger container - maybe the sort that's used to put cats in to.

    1. Wize

      What...

      ...a wheelie bin?

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: What

        It can keep the cockerel company.

        http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/10/07/bin_bird/

  4. George Nacht
    Grenade

    So, how long before

    someone post some kind of Schroedinger joke?

    Jokes aside, how am I supposed to call this woman? "Bitch" doesn´t cover it, as no bitch would treat a puppy like that.

    1. Chad H.
      WTF?

      Schrodinger

      Schrodinger's thing was a cat - not a dog.

      1. Tim Elphick
        Pint

        I agree.

        Please review the factual basis for your humour before posting.

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Headmaster

        It might have been a dog, you cannot know until you look in the box...

        According to the Copenhagen interpretation, when Schrödinger's cat is in the box it exists as a superposed wave function which is not collapsed until it is observed.

        You cannot tell if the cat is alive or dead (it is both). You also cannot tell if Schrödinger accidentally put a dog in there instead (it is that too).

        As for the original article; I call Hanlon's razor.....

        1. Chad H.

          @ AC 14:32GMT

          Okay, you got me there.

      3. Charles Manning

        It's a cat

        but until you check it could also be a dog.

      4. Scorchio!!
        Boffin

        Re: Schrodinger

        "Schrodinger's thing was a cat - not a dog."

        However his point was species independent. Particularity is to be avoided when discussing physics concepts. It could just as easily have been a baby, or even an adult human.

    2. fch

      "animal in box" and Schroedinger references ...

      ... and noone here so far suggested to lock Schroedinger in the box instead !

      Btw, Schroedinger obviously chose a cat to simplify the experiment. Had he used a mole, fox or rabbit instead, it might well have tunnelled out ...

  5. The Fuzzy Wotnot
    Pint

    Just bizarre!

    Makes you wonder what thought processes go through the head of someone like this? Was she simply freaking stupid or actually not bothered if the animal made it to the destination alive? Judging by the fact that she lied about the package containing a toy robot, to disgiuse the poor creatures cries for help, she's obviously doesn't give a toss about another creature's welfare!

    Just boogles your noggin!

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Dead Vulture

      You missed the point...

      She was probably trying to send a dead puppy to the relative in Georgia, whom she obviously hates and wanted to completely freak out.

      It's just that it hadn't died yet when it got to the airport...

  6. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    She's a plant

    Cat-bin-lady paid her to do it to make her seem sane by comparison.

  7. Bonce

    Ooh! A present from Auntie Stacey

    How exciting!

    *unwraps*

    Hmmm, a dead puppy with ten dollars stuffed in its collar. Thanks Auntie Stacey.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Relative-ly awful

      I've had worse presents from relatives.

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      The ten Dollars

      Would obviously go towards the kids first therapy session.

  8. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Her IQ is not what her surname suggests,,,,

    ....and sometimes I think dogs are the most unfortunate species in the world, having to deal with humans on a daily basis...

  9. JaitcH
    WTF?

    This is on a par with drying small dogs in a microwave or X-raying a baby in check-in

    It appears the days when ignorant New Yorkers 'nuked' their miniature dogs are fading but this particular women is little better.

    There was also the cases in the U.S. where babies carrier were X-rayed for dangerous weapons, with the BABY still INSIDE! See: < http://articles.latimes.com/2006/dec/20/local/me-baby20 > and <http://www.securityoracle.com/security_forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=267 >.

  10. Disco-Legend-Zeke

    Chicks Are...

    ...shipped from hatcheries* every Monday by via US postal Service.

    Most arrive safe and alive on Wednesday. Boxes are clearly marked and have plenty of air holes. No one pretends the peeping noises are toy related.

    *often to clueless people. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpIw4R4wxFQ

    1. John Gaunt

      Peeping Packages

      I have stood in line in US post offices where peeping packages were behind the counter waiting for the recipient to pick them up. The packages have numerous air holes, are marked appropriately, and emit chirping noises.

      I do not know the USPS regulations for shipping other livestock or any animal larger than chicks.

      1. steward
        IT Angle

        Apparently...

        the problem was simply not telling the postal service that there was a live animal in there. Live animals have to be shipped Special Handling, and there are increased postage fees and notifications for that.

        http://www.usps.com/send/waystosendmail/extraservices/specialhandlingservice.htm

        1. LateNightLarry
          Coat

          Apparently,

          Sorry, you cannot ship live animals, except day old poultry, bees, and certain reptiles in the mail... Special Handling or not... In fact, day old poultry, etc., must be sent Express Mail with guaranteed overnight delivery.

      2. LateNightLarry
        Coat

        Peeping Packages

        US Postal regulations do permit the mailing of day old poultry, bees, and certain other insects and reptiles, but there are restrictions on maximum transit time, expected weather, etc. Basically, each shipment is decided on a case by case basis at the time the properly marked boxes are presented for shipping... Boxes must be well ventilated, Dogs or cats CANNOT be shipped through the mail.

        Generally, USPS must be able to deliver the package within 24 hours, nothing ships over a weekend or holiday, and the recipient must be available to receive the package upon arrival. I can remember many times having boxes of chicks or bees sitting in the coolest part of the office waiting for the consignee to pick them up.

        Just hand me the one with the copy of US Postal Regs (1,000 page abridged edition) in the pocket...

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Not perfectly "safe".

      There is generally a 5% to 10% fatality rate in shipping chicks. In fact, I think some chick hatcheries ship extra in each box to compensate for this.

    3. bubba-bear
      Pirate

      USPS Chicks

      The USPS established the chick postal delivery service about a hundred years ago; it served a specific need at the time, and it is still used. There are specific requirements regarding the packaging of the chicks, and the USPS ensures that the chicks are handled properly during transport and delivery. The trays of chicks are handled quite differently from a box containing a pair of boots or an improperly packaged and posted puppy.

  11. onyxruby
    FAIL

    Unfair title

    This occurred fairly close to where I live and so I've already read the local articles about it. The title is unfair, it was only due to the diligence of the postal workers in the first place that this puppy was found and saved before it was killed in transit.

    The women who shipped the puppy lied about what was inside and shipped the animal with a service that doesn't support shipping live animals to begin with. It's a bit like complaining about someone's Honda failing to be able to tow a small yacht, it was never advertised as being able to do such a thing to begin with! To top it all off the same women then returned and demanded a refund of her shipping charge.

    1. Sarah Bee (Written by Reg staff)

      Re: Unfair title

      Sorry - unfair how? There's no implication she didn't deserve it.

      1. Bit Brain

        I think they're referring to the sub-title

        "Dogs can survive anything but the US Postal Service"

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Thumb Down

      ... and ironically

      The puppy was probably subsequently taken to a pound and put down.

  12. Simpson

    Mafia warning?

    Maybe it was intended as a low budget version of a horse's head.

  13. Graham Bartlett

    @John Gaunt

    I think the issue is more that you need to *know* it's got something living inside it. Air-freighting dogs is perfectly normal - after all, you can't exactly book it a seat. But the shipper needs to know the box has an animal in it, so that the box gets put in a heated, pressurised hold.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Unhappy

      Air Freighting dogs

      Dogs shipped via airlines do get special handling, but cost $400 to $500. There was a case recently where someone shipped a furless cat in midwinter which contracted hypothermia and died due to the baggage workers taking to long to unload it from the plane. Being put into a cargo hold is a VERY traumatic experience for a pet.

      1. tony trolle

        thats cheap (no chicken pun)

        I got a quote of $2000 from USA to UK

    2. bubba-bear
      Pirate

      The animal also needs a health certificate

      When an animal is air shipped within the US, it needs to be certified by a veterinarian that it is healthy and has had proper immunizations. I used to check my cat as baggage -- he was in a proper kennel that was suitable for shipping an animal -- and he had to have a valid health certificate.

  14. Yet Another Anonymous coward Silver badge

    @heated, pressurised hold.

    I'd love to see one of these planes where the hold isn't pressurized - do the pilots wear space suits?

    Still one airport claimed some gear of mine had to go in my carry on because it wasn't allowed in the unpressurized hold in my checked baggage!

    The hold (or part of it on a 747) is heated if they have pets, if the pilot remembers to turn it on!

  15. Jon Double Nice

    Reminds me of good old GTA3

    http://www.rockstargames.com/grandtheftauto3/petsOvernight/

  16. John Smith 19 Gold badge

    Too many possibilities

    Sadly none of them in good taste.

    Probably best to leave it there.

  17. Glenn Charles

    fatality

    Due temp and atmospheric pressure. Not that I ever rode in a cargo plane.

    --G

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