Heatwave Heroes! Keepers Help our Zoo Stay Cool
PUBLISHED 20/06/25
Heatwave heroes: Zookeepers beat the heat with showers, shade, and ice lollies for animals
Summer is finally here and as the temperature soars, there’s nothing quite like an ice lolly, finding a shady spot, or a quick spritz with the sprinkler to stay cool – all things the keepers here at Drusillas employ to ensure our animals are comfortable in the warmer weather.
With the mercury hitting a balmy 26 degrees today, our Zookeepers have been pulling out all the stops to protect the animals from the heat. Ensuring they have access to plenty of water, offering refreshing showers, and serving up a range of tasty frozen treats to help residents cool off.
During hot weather, it’s important for zoos across the country to make sure their animals thrive in the heat. One way to do this is by providing additional water sources, such as sprinklers for the animals to bathe in – something resident giant anteater Raya particularly enjoys. Keepers also hose down some of the animal habitats to lower the temperature and ensure the animals stay relaxed and happy.
Zoo Section Leader, Jacinta Dawe, commented: “Some species at Drusillas really enjoy the heat and you’ll spot them sunbathing, for instance our lemurs; sun worshippers that love to stretch out and catch some rays. But other animals, like our red pandas, don’t enjoy the warm weather quite as much, so we lower the temperature in their habitats by spraying the area with a hose. This additional water provides extra moisture in the air and the tree canopy, replicating the panda’s natural environment and helping to keep them cool.”
She continued, “Other species, for example our giant anteater Raya, like to actively bathe to cool off. So, we create her very own shower for her in warm weather, which she absolutely loves! Her all-time favourite way to ‘chill’ is bathing in the anteater pool while being showered with water. We treated her to this today and she was thrilled, rolling around in the water to show her appreciation! Bathing is also great for her skin and coat, and a fun enrichment activity, so it’s a fantastic experience for her all round.”
While the animals at the zoo can’t enjoy the sort of ice lollies we love to cool off with, their frozen treats are no less exciting. Keepers like to get creative by making food-layered ice lollies stacked with delicious ingredients including tasty peanuts, crunchy seeds, zingy fresh herbs, and even herbal teas.
Our troop of cheeky meerkats surrounded the lollies furiously licking to get to the tasty treats inside, the macaques took a much more laid back approach enjoying a slow nibble, the armadillos attacked theirs with full force, and the zoo’s camels wasted no time taking huge chomps.
Jacinta continued: “We use these ice lollies to keep the animals cool in the heat because animals do not sweat in the same way humans do. The animals just want to get their paws on the rewards hidden in the lollies, but as they grab, lick, nibble and break them down, their mouths and paws are cooled. The food inside is carefully measured and taken from their normal daily food allowance so although it’s lots of fun to see them with ice lollies, they still sit within their monitored diets.”
“Ice lollies are a great way to keep the animals cool, but they also serve an enrichment purpose as well. Making the animals work for their food in creative ways, helps to stimulate them mentally and physically and forces them to use their instincts to look for food as they would in the wild.”
Elsewhere in the zoo animals such as the flamingos have been combating the heat by walking around their waterfall, the capybaras and beavers have been taking long dips in their pool.
For human visitors it’s easy to keep cool at the Get Wet! splash pad, open every day until the end of September. There’s also plenty of shady spots and icy refreshments to make sure the whole family can keep cool.