SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - With the heat felt all across South Florida, the staff at Zoo Miami are doing their best to cool off some of their biggest residents.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue turned on the hoses for Nellie, the zoo’s female Asian elephant, Tuesday morning.
“In the wild, they’re gonna naturally find some shade, they’re gonna have watering holes,” said Zoo Miami Animal Enrichment Specialist Katie Beachem. “You’ll see here on our habitats that we do have watering holes for them. We also have amazing keepers who provide them ice blocks, cooling enrichment things, we have fans going on, always monitoring to make sure that their temperature is OK in this really hot weather.”
The water does more than just cool Nellie down. It also creates mud, which elephants use to help protect their skin from the sun.
And for all the visitors in attendance, it was quite the show.
“That’s such a fun way of doing it. I wish they could do it for us,” said a zoo visitor.
Zoo Miami said the members of its animal care team closely monitor conditions during extreme weather to ensure animals have access to water, shade and other ways to cool off.
“We have a welfare team, that’s actually part of the team that I am on. It’s welfare enrichment and behavior, so we work with all of the animal care teams to ensure that our animals are being taken care of properly and to address their natural species-specific needs,” said Beachem.
At Zoo Miami, all of their animals are getting the proper care to make sure that they are staying safe in the heat.
Zoo Miami is open until 5 p.m. Tuesday. Those who plan to visit are advised to bring plenty of water, take frequent breaks and limit their time in the direct sunlight.
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