Pet Friendly: Dogs Get Their Own New Lounge At John F. Kennedy International Airport

John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City just joined a growing number of pet-friendly airports in the U.S. offering comfort facilities for traveling dogs.

When traveling with the family pet or a service dog, bathroom facilities can be a major problem. However, with new federal regulations in place, airports servicing more than 10,000 travelers per year will need to install what are termed “pet relief areas” by August this year.

Not to be outdone, John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City has installed a 70-square-foot pet bathroom inside Terminal Four. The specially-designed pet relief area comes comfortably lined with green turf and even has a red fire hydrant for those who need to lift their leg.

Dogs get a lounge of their own at pet-friendly airports: https://t.co/Y0deAcf07P pic.twitter.com/OO18SPFKos

— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) May 2, 2016

To avoid confusion with human bathrooms, they’ve clearly marked the room with a paw print, and the room comes equipped with a sink, dog waste bags, and a hose to clean off once your pet has relieved him- or herself.

The pet relief area was designed by JFK International Air Terminal (JFKIAT), the operator of Terminal Four of JFK Airport, in combination with the U.S. Guide Dog Foundation.

According to a report by ABC News, Well Jones, the CEO of the Guide Dog Foundation, said in a statement, “By working collaboratively, we are ensuring that people who travel with assistance dogs have a more enjoyable and less stressful travel experience.”

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According to Gert-Jan de Graaff, the president and CEO of JFKIAT, airport officials recognize the growing presence of animals in their terminal and the significant increase in passengers traveling with their pets.

He said, “We wanted to provide owners with a convenient location to relieve their animals without having to exit the terminal.”

This isn’t the only pet relief area available at JFK Airport, as there is an existing dog rest facility at JetBlue’s outdoor terrace, which opened in Terminal Five some time back and is pictured below.

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As it gets closer to the cut-off date in August, many more airports will be following the trend and adding appropriate pet-friendly lounges, but several already have them in place.

At the Washington Dulles International Airport, pets and service animals have several areas before and after security checkpoints to choose from. All these pet relief areas are clearly marked for convenience and offer dog waste bags and baskets.

The Seattle-Tacoma International Airport offers several indoor and outdoor pet relief facilities. Indoors, there are five places where pets can relieve themselves, including two areas near the Main Terminal, two more near Baggage Claim, and one outside of Concourse B.

At Chicago O’Hare International Airport, there is a similar facility to the new pet relief area at JFK Airport, with a two-by-four-foot indoor area with green artificial turf, the requisite mini fire hydrants, along with doggie waste bags and a hose to clean up afterward. Reportedly, the room also offers a sprinkler system to help clean away liquid waste. A human factor at this airport is that the room is also wheelchair accessible.

San Diego International Airport installed a new animal relief area a couple of years ago near the Guillermo statue at Terminal 1. The pet relief spot is equipped with grass, a fire hydrant, and a doggie water fountain and is pictured below.

https://www.instagram.com/p/p9e1dSqs2f/

[Image via Flickr by Miguel Tejada-Flores, cropped and resized/CC BY-NC 2.0]