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ARK animal terminal to open at JFK airport

ARK animal terminal to open at JFK airport

ARK animal terminal to open at JFK airport

Seventy climate-controlled horse stalls.

Holding pens for 180 cattle.

A 20,000-square-foot pet resort, with massage therapy and 'pawdicures' offered by Paradise 4 Paws.

These are just some of the astonishing features set to be offered to travelling animals at the aptly named ARK, a luxury terminal set to open at New York's Kennedy Airport.

Some 70,000 animals are expected to set paw/hoof/foot through JFK's 178,000-square-foot ARK facility each year, with the £31 million terminal set to open in 2016. 

Catering for animals that have to be transported in a plane's hold and go through a variable quarantine process, passengers will be able to check their pets or livestock shipments (for a fee of around $100-a-night) into the ARK's facilities, rather than having them shipped to separate facilities around New York. 

For equine visitors, the aforementioned climate-controlled stalls will sport soft flooring to protect the horses' hooves, showers and a "poop chute", capable of handling over 2,000 kg of manure a day.

Dog's will be able to frolic in the bone-shaped "splashing" pools, check in for pampering therapies (there are canine nail varnishes on offer, for crying out loud) and web cams, to allow owners to check in on their mutts.

Cats will be able to run off their pre-boarding stress in a "jungle" area, complete with artificial trees and scratch posts. 

It might all seem a touch silly, but there's money to be had from individuals who insist on travelling with their pets. As The Guardian points out, flying your dog from New York to London can cost £650. A horse? £6,500. 

You can expect the first "My dog came home pregnant from a stay at JFK" headlines to start arriving some time next year. 

[Via: Daily Mail]