Heathrow Animal Reception Centre (HARC) is delivering bespoke animal handling and containment training to the airport’s airside operations team.
It will help staff respond to domestic, exotic, hazardous, and large animals in the event of an incident in a live environment. The training also covers animal behaviour, zoonotic risk, safe handling of dogs and cats, identification and containment of hazardous or exotic species, and response protocols for large animal incidents.
Peter Dunphy, chair of the port health and environmental services committee at the City of London Corporation, which owns HARC, said: “Heathrow Airport handles one of the most diverse live animal flows in the world. That demands more than basic awareness training in scenarios where speed, judgement, and control are critical.”Each year, around 100 farm animals, 300 horses, 1,000 birds, 20,000 dogs and cats, 120,000 reptiles and amphibians, 22 million ornamental fish, and billions of invertebrates arrive at Heathrow.
“Airside Operations teams are not necessarily animal specialists, yet they are the first on scene when an incident occurs,” added the Corporation’s assistant director animal health and welfare, Susie Pritchard. “Our role as a leading provider in live animal care and compliance is to share our expertise, set clear standards, and ensure that safety, welfare, and operational continuity are treated as one integrated responsibility.”
HARC is the UK’s only Live Animal Border Control Post approved to receive all species. It is IATA CEIV Live Animals certified and operates 24/7 all year round, caring for millions of animals annually, including zoo species and high value consignments.
