Winter turns cozy for animals in Hyderabad zoo
Arrangements in place to protect animals from the chill and ensure they survive seasonal ailments
Hyderabad: Sharp fall in temperature has prompted officials at the Nehru Zoological Park to initiate various measures to keep the inmates of the zoo warm.
Apart from the special arrangements to keep the animals and birds warm throughout the winter, care is taken to ensure the animals survive seasonal ailments.
Room heaters have been arranged in all the night houses for the big cats, including tigers and leopards, and also in the primate night houses for inmates like baboons, chimpanzees and the lion-tailed macaques. The night houses of reptiles are equipped with dry leaves, bulbs and small pots to protect them from the chill.
Leoparad at Nehru Zoo, Hyderabad.
According to officials, with winter turning too cold, all the measures have been recently completed. “We take special care every season for the safety of the animals and provide them with suitable conditions. Animals will be healthy during winter and it is the ideal time for breeding,” a senior zoo official said.
As part of winter care measures, the carnivore night houses have been covered with gunny bags to stop chilly winds and to protect them from seasonal diseases. The avian night houses are covered with green cloth to protect them from possible cold waves while nest boxes are being set up particularly for macaws and cockatoos and similar birds that are sensitive to the weather.
Air-conditioning will be stopped for animals till the winter is over, officials said, adding that in addition to these arrangements, animals and birds are being provided with B-Complex supplements in order to overcome stress.
For small monkeys like the squirrel monkey, small wooden boxes with dry paddy straw and a room heater in the night house are being set up. Animal houses of the mouse deer breeding centre would also be covered with green cloth on the outer side and provided with dry paddy straw, officials added.
Birds in Nehru Zoological Park, Hyderabad.
Rise in footfall
Hyderabad: Nehru Zoological Park has seen slight rise in the number of visitors in the last few days. If the total number of visitors when the zoo reopened after the lockdown on October 6 was a little over 1,000, the same went up to 6,000 on Sundays.
Officials said that there was a steady growth in the number of visitors. “We expect the number to rise in the coming days. Visitors can confidently come here as all Covid-19 measures are in place,” an official said.
However, the safari rides, reptile house, nocturnal house, aquarium, National History Museum and fossil museum will remain closed till further orders from the government.
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