Way back when, my ex-wife and I moved from Toronto to Calgary with our three cats. Each was in an airline-approved carrier, and they went in the cargo hold. We took care to label each carrier with the cat’s name, and the last time of its food and water. Especially water. And our contact cellphone numbers, of course.
Everything worked out just fine, flights were on time, and our cats arrived in Calgary at the same time as we did. All in good condition. So no worries.
But if there had been delays (say, a mechanical delay lasting a few hours), would our cats have been cared for, and how? Would they have been offloaded, allowed water, and maybe some food? I was fully prepared to deal with soiled carriers when they arrived (which didn’t happen), but an hours-long delay might mean something else. What might happen in the interim if they needed water, food, or a litterbox?