The owners of a five-month-old dog are demanding a criminal investigation after their pet died during a flight from Amsterdam to Los Angeles.

The purebred Central Asian Shepherd puppy, named Bear, was discovered dead in the cargo hold of a KLM plane when it touched down at LAX airport.

The Avetisian family, from the California city of Pasadena, had been given the dog by friends in Greece. They were ready to collect it when the plane arrived in the US via the Netherlands.

“We were waiting for months to get that puppy and give him some love, my kids were waiting,” Andranik Avetisian told ABC affiliate KABC. “It is very difficult. It is very hard for me.”

Mr Avetisian has said they have been unable to collect the dog’s body or even see it since the plane arrived on 19 March.

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The family’s lawyer Evan Oshan told KABC they were now considering legal action. “We want a criminal investigation of the circumstances surrounding the death of Bear,” Mr Oshan said.

“You don’t take someone’s property, someone’s family member, somebody’s pet and just keep it without any kind of explanation,” the lawyer added.

In a statement, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines said: “We take matters of animal welfare very seriously. KLM’s Cargo Department is in contact with the owner of the dog, and for reasons of customer confidentiality, we cannot release further details around the current investigation.”

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KLM previously said it had to “wait for the results of the necropsy to determine the cause of death”.

The airline said its policy was to keep larger animals “in a ventilated part of the hold” while small cats and dogs are allowed to accompany passengers in the cabin.