ORLANDO – The family of a woman wheeled off a flight by police after refusing to deplane with her support squirrel is upset over how the incident was handled.
Cindy Torok's daughter, Monica, spoke to KSAT's sister station WKMG about the ordeal, saying she was heartbroken over the way her mom was treated.
Monica Torok said she called the airline twice to make sure her mom would be allowed to fly with her support squirrel. She says she was told the squirrel would be allowed if it was kept inside its pet carrier and if her mother had a note from her doctor.
Cindy Torok had a note and kept the squirrel in the carrier, however, when the crew noticed Cindy Torok's squirrel onboard the flight Tuesday evening, they asked her to leave the plane. When she refused, all of the passengers were evacuated and police were called to escort Torok off.
Frontier Airlines released a statement saying "Rodents, including squirrels, are not allowed on Frontier flights."
Torok was able to catch a flight to Cleveland the next day but she had to do it without her squirrel.
Her family is hoping airlines will change their policies about limiting the kinds of support animals that they allow.
"We're going to call the ADA (American with Disabilities Act) and talk to them and see what they have to say about it," Monica Torok told WKMG. "We got to fight for your rights. You can't let people take your rights away."
Read more on ClickonOrlando.com and watch their story, here:
Jimmy Kimmel showed clips of an interview with Cindy Torok on his show Wednesday night: