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A video is making the rounds on social media, where Kaya, the German shepherd police dog, can be seen taking her final flight with Southwest Airlines on February 2, 2023. The service dog has sadly due to untreatable cancer. Reportedly, the service traveled with the airline for years, and later, when the airline shared a video of the dog who passed away, the internet was left in tears.
In the video, the pilot can be heard making the announcement:
“We have a special guest on today’s flight. Kaya is a German Shephard service dog who has been with her handler cole since 2014. She was specifically trained to help veterans cope with mental health issues. She was the inspiration for the PAWS act, its federal law that allows us to unify service dogs with Veterans with post-traumatic stress which was signed into law in 2021.”
As the dog lay on the carpet on the flight, the pilot further announced that Kaya had flown on Southwest Airlines over 250 times out of the 320 flights she’s been on. He then went on to declare that the dog was diagnosed with cancer.
Southwest Airlines additionally shared a few images of the service dog being carried by her handler. The airline captioned the pictures:
“We were honoured to fly our loyal friend and hero, Kaya, home to rest after a lifetime of hard work. Throughout her career, she flew with us over 250 times to help establish the PAWS Act which united Veterans with service dogs.”
Although it is unknown exactly when the dog passed away, Cole, her handler, tweeted that Kaya had passed away on February 5, 2023. He said:
“We have the solemn honor of taking her on her last flight”: Kaya’s video of her last flight left the internet emotional as the service dog passed away due to cancer
When the pilot informed that the service dog was being taken home to rest, where she was born and first met Cole, the touching video quickly gained popularity on social media. The pilot said:
“If you have the opportunity and feel so inclined, feel free to search for her story. Pay her a visit when we arrive in Dallas to show her some loved. On behalf of Southwest Airlines, your 2 veterans up front, we thank both Kaya and Cole, a Marine Corps Veteran, for their service.”
As several people on the flight clapped, the service dog woke up and saw people cheering for her. The airline made sure the dog had "world-class treatment," and tweeted a video of the dog being taken. Furthermore, as Southwest Airlines posted the video with the emotional caption, Cole also commented and said:
Furthermore, seeing the emotional video, the internet could not stop shedding tears. With tons of people thanking her for her services, others posted how the video made them weepy.
In 2014, Cole got a service dog. He also contributed to the beginning of the PAWS Act, which gathered money to link veterans of war with service dogs.
