Delta offered $1,800 to a woman who accused the airline of losing her dog — her attorney is calling the offer an 'insult'

• Delta offered a woman who accused the airline of losing her dog $1,800, CBS News reported.
• According to CBS News correspondent David Begnaud, the woman's lawyer called the offer "an insult."

A woman who accused Delta of losing her dog was offered $1,800 by the airline as she continues to appeal for information on the whereabouts of her beloved pet.

CBS News correspondent David Begnaud reported in a TikTok Friday that Paula Rodriguez, the owner of the missing pup named Maia, was offered a sum of money by Delta after she accused the airline of losing her dog at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

According to Begnaud, Rodriguez's attorney called Delta's offer an "insult."

Rodriguez did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider, made outside regular working hours.

A Delta representative told Insider the $1,800 sum is not an "offer of compensation."

"Delta people have shown empathy through many actions, gestures and communications with our customer. That continues," the rep said. "As this matter is being handled by attorneys representing the customer and Delta, we will point out that what our customer is sharing is one portion of an initial conversation between attorneys and not reflective of an offer of compensation."

"Delta remains heartbroken for what this customer is going through but will refrain from making further comment on this matter," the rep added.

Rodriguez first shared the story of her missing pup, a rescue, with television station Atlanta News First on August 23.

She said she arrived in Atlanta from the Dominican Republic with Maia on August 18 but was denied entry to the US by customs officials.

"They told me very kindly, 'We're so sorry, but you don't meet the requirements to enter the U.S., you've been denied entry, and you need to be sent back home to Santo Domingo,'" Rodriguez said. She was then told she would have to spend a night at a detention center, where she would be separated from her dog.

Rodriguez said before her flight back to the Dominican Republic the following morning, she discovered her dog was missing.

"I was like, 'I'm sorry, I can't get on this plane, I don't know where my dog is,'" Rodriguez said. "I was crying, I had panic attacks on the plane, I had to get on the plane because the U.S. Border Control told me, 'Hey, we can't have you here by law in this airport for more than 24 hours.'"

After arriving in the Dominican Republic, Rodriguez said she made multiple calls to Delta to ask about her dog's whereabouts. Two days later, she said she was contacted by a representative who informed her that Maia had broken out of its kennel.

Rodriguez has since issued a $1,000 reward for information on the whereabouts of her dog.

In a post shared on her Facebook profile, she wrote she "strongly" believes Maia has been found by someone who "is not aware that she is being searched for."

The post contained a missing dog flyer featuring a photo of Maia, described as "mixed/female," small, and wearing a collar with shells.

The flyer also advised anyone who comes into contact with the dog not to chase, call, or whistle at her as it may cause her to run away in fear.