Wellington Zoo animals keep it cool in summer heat

Blocks of frozen blood, wheelie-bin-sized chunks of ice, and paddling pools from The Warehouse - there are numerous ways that the animals at Wellington Zoo are keeping cool in this summer's scorching heat.

Wellingtonians may have been melting under the sun over the holidays, but the zoo's residents are faring a little better with the "summer enrichment" that zookeepers provide to cool the animals down.

"The most common ones are the ice blocks," said carnivore team leader Maxine Jenkins.

"For the lions we have a huge one, up to a wheelie-bin size ... [we] freeze interesting smells in there like turmeric."

Sometimes the keepers will also freeze bones into the ice block, so lions have to spend time working to get them out.

Capybaras take a dip

#ZooCam! ☀️Welly sure has turned on the sunshine today! ☀️ To keep our animals cool in this hot weather, we ensure they always have plenty of shady spots and shelter in their habitats. Certain species of animals, like our primates and carnivores also get tasty ice-blocks! 😋Our Capybaras on the other hand are quite happy to cool themselves down in their waterhole - check out Vara, Iapa and Guara, our three females enjoying a quick afternoon dip. 🎥: Our Health and Safety Manager, Chris took this awesome vid!

Posted by Wellington Zoo on Sunday, 14 January 2018

For other animals, keepers provide extra water sources, sometimes using classic clamshell-shaped paddling pools from The Warehouse.

"Sometimes they like to just jump in. We put ice cubes in so it's more like an ice bath."

Otters and some of the large cats get frozen blood, while the sun bears get bucket-sized fruit smoothies.

Smoothies might have a rope frozen into them so they can be hung from a tree.

Keepers might also freeze a water balloon and create a hollow centre to stuff with food.

"They have to smash it to get the treats."

The animals also have their own instinctive ways of cooling down.

The capybara and meerkats dig holes in the ground to hide, where it is cooler for them.

The capybara have also been spotted taking an enthusiastic dip in their water hole.

The red pandas' enclosure has built-in sprinklers in the trees to keep their temperatures down, as they have thick coats of fur.

Aside from helping the animals stay comfortable in the summer heat, keepers also provide regular enrichment such as creating "scent trails" or "blood trails".

For the cheetahs, their favourite scent is Chanel No. 5, something keepers have found out "through trialling it".