Three Ways We Keep Animals Cool in the Summer

The summer temperatures can really zap our energy after spending time outside on a warm day, and we use different methods to keep ourselves cool. At the Creation Museum, we do the same things for our animals in the petting zoo with three unique ways designed to keep each one from getting too hot during these warm summer days.

Popsicles

One way our zookeepers keep our animals cool is with popsicles. They chop fruits and vegetables and mix them with colored water (to make it more fun for our visitors) before being frozen, then each is hung up in the pens a few days later for our animals to enjoy. In addition to the popsicles being a refreshing treat for our animals on a hot day, it also serves as a form of enrichment, an activity designed to enhance our animals’ environment based on their natural behavior. The coatis even enjoy playing with ice cubes when it’s hot outside.

Water

Just like your children enjoy running through sprinklers and swimming in the pool during the summer, our animals like playing in water as well. We have sprinklers set up for our camels, zorse, zonkey and alpacas to enjoy, while our wallabies like to lie in the little pool that we sit out for them.

Fans

Each animal’s home is also equipped with a fan. Not only do these give our animals some relief from the heat, but some fans can even help cool down our guests if they are standing in the right spot. Each pen is also equipped with shade that provides protection from the sun.

Don’t feel left out while venturing through the petting zoo! We have misters over the walkway next to the wallabies’ pen, so you can cool off while you visit our animals too!