Airports, Airlines, Aviation

Animal Friendly Terminal at JFK


Animals, in particular, dogs are becoming a common occurrence on commercial aircraft these days. Many airlines allow a dog or cat are under a certain weight to be carried in the cabin along with your luggage. Often people will certify their dogs as service animals and bring larger animals into the cabin for no extra fee. Granted many of these dogs are needed and provide a tremendous service to their owners, but I still find it hard to believe there aren’t people who take advantage of this system. It might sense when you think about it, pay to get your dog certified as a service dog and save money by not having to pay the airline a pet fee. Your cozy canine gets to stay in the cabin with you and not stuck down in the hold, a win-win for both owner and pet. For many people there pet is an extended member of the family so why shouldn’t they get the same treatment. JFK has noticed this behavior and proposed their own solution, a dedicated animal terminal.

jfk doggie

The ARK appropriately named after the biblical vessel that Noah took 2 of each animal on to save them from the flood is set to open sometime next year. The terminal is the size of an ark and will be able to accommodate animals of all kinds. There will be stables for horses and cows and a mating area for penguins. It sounds like more of an animal exhibit than a terminal, maybe there will be visiting hours for the passengers.

The ARK terminal is set to cost $48 million and will be 178,000-square-foot (16,500-square-meter). It is being marketed as a shelter and quarantine facility that will take all kinds of creatures even an occasional sloth. The quarantine facility is meant for animals like horses and cows to reside in to make sure they don’t have infectious diseases before they are let out on the US mainland. From The ARK terminal, they can be shipped to barns, racetracks, shows and competition venues all around the globe. It’s a hub for animals traveling on to a bigger and better life.

For our precious pups, The ARK will offer a 20,000-sqf luxury dog spa run by the company Paradise 4 Paws. The resort comes equipped with bone-shaped splashing pools, massage therapy, and a doggy day spa. Dogs can chill out and watch a flat-screen TVs while their owners can check in on them via webcam.

The ARK will be built on an unused cargo terminal that has been demolished. According to the Guardian Newspaper the ARK Development, an affiliate of the Madison Avenue real-estate company Racebrook Capital, has signed a 32-year lease for the airport property with the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey agency that runs Kennedy.

Shipping animals is no cheap endeavor and the JFK ARK terminal is hoping to make that process easier and more efficient for passengers. It would be great if there were doggy daycare and overnight care for people traveling on business or families going on vacation so they can be reunited with their at the airport. As more money is being spent on pet care it was only a matter of time until the airports got involved, pets have travel needs as well. As always if you are traveling through JFK be sure to use the tripchi app for all your airport needs. Travel On!


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