During my career, I came across hundreds of dog abandonment stories with various excuses from irresponsible owners, but none of them ever sounded good enough.

What I’m trying to say is that there can never be a good reason for abandoning a dog on the streets without food, water, and a place to stay, especially when there are so many shelters and rescue centers that take great care of pups.

Leaving a dog because of the inability to board him on a flight cannot be justified either, which is why a man from Iowa is now facing charges for misdemeanor.

The Doggo Terminal

Source: @arliowa

Although this isn’t just a movie and there are no Tom Hanks or Catherine Zeta Jones included, Stella, a female pooch left in front of the airport for days, does share certain similarities with the protagonist of the “The Terminal” movie.

First of all, they both end up stuck at the airport (or in front of it), unwanted by people around them or those at home, and they both somehow manage to have a happy ending although they don’t end up with the ones they loved the most at that point.

I know it might sound funny at first, but if you really think about it, Stella really shares a similar fate as Viktor; however, she doesn’t come back to her old home, but gets a new one instead.

According to an Instagram post from the Animal Rescue League of Iowa (ARLIowa), Stella was a “Jane Doe dog” that was lucky to be found outside the airport. Further inspection revealed the whole mystery of a pup tied nearby the airport and the main culprit for such terrible act:
“[…] airline workers told us the dog was unable to board the cross-country flight home with her owner because the owner did not have a kennel. They said the owner left the airport with the dog, but returned alone, and went on to board their flight.”

Source: @arliowa

Considering that the rescue staff had no idea what the doggo was called when they first found her, they decided to name her Allie.

Justice Always Gets Served

The owner of the pooch probably thought that he had fixed everything when he boarded the flight to New Jersey and left his family pet tied up outside the airport, but according to the words of ARL Iowa director, Tom Colvin, for Today, nothing was fixed at all.

Colvin told the whole story of a man who was trying to get on a flight from Iowa to New Jersey with a canine without a kennel (thinking that the airport provided clients with crates for their pets).

After finding out that he couldn’t move on with his dog, the man named Charles Bigsen (as stated in the media, including Daily Mail) allegedly tried to find a Good Samaritan who would take care of his pooch at the airport so he could board the flight.

However, there was no one willing to take over such responsibility, so Stella’s owner claimed he had no other option left but to tie the dog outside and leave.

Now, Bigsen is facing several charges, including animal neglect and abandonment, which will be applied as soon as he comes back to Iowa.

New Day, New Home

Stella/Allie went through a lot, especially after having to spend days without proper food, water, or freedom to move, but after the ARL came to the rescue, her life immediately changed for the better.

Source: Source: @arliowa

After a warm bath, vet checkup, and lots of cuddles, Allie was up for adoption. Although the staff first thought it wouldn’t be easy to find her the perfect owner, that didn’t turn out to be a huge issue.

Her charming personality, goofy behavior, and great looks helped her find the right home in less than a month.

Even though both Allie and the ARL staff had a great time together, the main point of her stay at the rescue was to find people who would love her, appreciate her, and never abandon her at the airport or any other place in the world.

As ARL Iowa stated in their update post:

“We’re happy to tell you that Allie, the dog left at the Des Moines airport, was adopted yesterday (January 12, 2023) by a family who saw her at the airport the day she was abandoned. Her new family has already reached out to us with an update, saying Allie is settling in very well.”

Although I’m beyond happy for Allie, it makes me sad to see how many pooches are still waiting for their forever home.

Still, I’m sure there are plenty of great people like the ones who adopted Allie who can’t wait to save another doggo’s life and change it for the better.