Despite being afraid of the heat, the "hairy child" remained calm, and Shanghai issued its first high-temperature orange warning signal of the year. Every time I arrive at Shanghai Zoo, there is a warning

Shanghai issued its first high-temperature orange warning signal of the year today. The hot and humid weather makes people feel uncomfortable, let alone some "furry kids" from cold regions.

Jiefang Daily's Shangguan News reporter learned from Shanghai Zoo and Shanghai Wildlife Park that the park has taken targeted measures to prevent heatstroke and cool down, allowing animals to spend the summer calmly.

Undress

Every June, the alpacas at Shanghai Zoo and Shanghai Wildlife Park sacrifice their appearance and use shaving to exchange for coolness.

Alpacas inhabit high plateaus at an altitude of around 4000 meters. Unlike camels that change their fur on their own in summer, they only wear them and foolishly wear padded hoodies. This is their instinct to cope with harsh weather conditions such as cold and strong winds in mountainous areas.

However, living in hot areas, this instinct is actually harmful, as thick camel hair can lead to heat stroke and even death in alpacas. Only by cutting it short can alpacas sweat and cool down smoothly, maintaining normal body temperature.

However, shaving an alpaca is not an easy task, and even experienced "Teacher Tony" says the pressure is immense.

"When it comes to shaving an alpaca for the first time, many people collapse," a herder from the grass eating area of Shanghai Zoo told reporters. "An alpaca is not as silly and cute as it looks. Once the" hairdresser "'s technique makes it uncomfortable, it will brazenly urinate in place, spit at people, even swing its neck, spin around, and kick people.".

Before and after the alpaca haircut

I am not used to bad hairdressers and just spray them!

After years of physical and mental training, the "hairdressers" of two parks have summarized a set of techniques to make alpacas "obedient".

Firstly, shaving should be done on an empty stomach for alpacas, otherwise they will constantly defecate when they are full of food and drink.

Next is to give alpacas "psychological massage". Although alpacas on an empty stomach do not defecate randomly, they have a worse temper when they are hungry. Therefore, before shaving, the park will conduct a period of desensitization training for the alpacas, including familiarizing them with trimming tools and maintaining appropriate posture. Experienced hands will observe the emotions of the alpacas and take action when they are still in a good mood, or have a caretaker hold their neck and "chat" with them to distract their attention, and other caretakers will take advantage of the opportunity to take action.

Thirdly, when shaving, the alpaca fur should be kept dry, otherwise it will become damp and tangled, the scissors will slip easily, and the trimming temperature is not easy to control, which may result in "mangy spots".

Finally, the order of shaving is usually done by first using large scissors and electric clippers to treat the back of the alpaca; Secondly, some areas that are prone to skin damage, such as the head and tail, should be carefully trimmed with scissors; Then there are the limbs, guiding the alpaca to lie on its side in order to create a more streamlined effect.

It seems clear that the feeling of taking off "clothes" is refreshing, and most alpacas are accustomed to shaving before returning to a harmless appearance for humans and animals. Only those newly born alpacas who have had their hair cut for the first time will allow their keepers to relive the past of collapse.

Efficiently pushing the back, the alpaca hasn't reacted yet, it's over

Why am I filled with tears after getting my hair cut? Is it because it's too ugly or too comfortable?

Eating cold drinks

In the scorching summer, various customized cold drinks that animals love are here again.

Every June, the feed distribution center of Shanghai Zoo thoroughly cleans and disinfects the cold storage and ice basins.

Afterwards, the stainless steel basin filled with drinking water was moved into a cold storage room with a temperature set at -18 ℃. Two days later, divide the bowl into two sizes of edible ice: 15 pounds and 30 pounds. Whenever the ambient temperature exceeds 35 ℃ or the weather is stuffy and hot, the feed distribution center will distribute ice cubes as needed.

Some of these basic ice cubes are crushed and mixed with other ingredients to form smoothies and ice drinks, some are directly placed in front of animals for consumption, or they are used as "natural air conditioning" by them, sitting nearby or even lying on top to dispel the heat.

You can play ice now, so happy!

The family of thin tailed mongooses recently had a high-end "sashimi" - fresh bread worms in an ice bowl, which are both authentic and refreshing.

The giant panda "Starlight" is more particular about eating, and at its 7th birthday party, it had an "ice cake" - a cake embryo made of pure water ice and vegetable and fruit ice, filled with its favorite carrots, apples, and steamed buns.

Northeast tigers love to drink milk, but in high temperature environments, milk needs to change its appearance to arouse their interest. The keeper prepared a basin of water one day in advance, added a few bags of milk powder, stirred it, and put it in the refrigerator to freeze. The next day, the frozen milk brick was smashed and poured onto a large stone outside. The Northeast tigers licked their tongues and couldn't stop anymore.

Compared to giant pandas and Northeast tigers, the cold drink structure in front of red pandas and brown bears is more complex: fruits and vegetables such as apples, cucumbers, carrots, oranges, etc. are cut into small pieces by the keeper and frozen in ice.

This "hard dish" can help create simple eating disorders, help grind teeth, "practice iron sand palms," generate beneficial stimuli, develop diversity in animal behavior, and avoid stereotypical and unnatural expressions.

Brown Bear's Assorted Fruit Ice

Come and eat apple ice together

The most popular cold drink in the zoo is undoubtedly chilled watermelon.

At the Shanghai Wildlife Park, giraffes from Africa sigh in the corner of the wall under a sunshade. As soon as they saw the watermelons in the hands of the caretaker, their eyes lit up and they ran all the way towards the food trough, using their slender tongues to "sweep away the remnants of the clouds.".

Gorillas from Africa also love the chilled watermelon feast. The keepers process watermelon juice, orange juice, yogurt, and other ingredients into various shapes of popsicles, making them dance happily.

Careful veterinarians also distribute anti heatstroke drugs such as "Rendan" and "Xia Sangju" to various animal living areas, where caregivers embed them into feed and drinking water to feed animals in need and enhance their anti heatstroke ability.

Shanghai Zoo offers a variety of customized vegetable and fruit ice styles

Giant Panda Starlight gnaws on Watermelon Ice

Enjoy the "Three Treasures"

There are three traditional ways to escape the heat: shading, showering, and incubating with air conditioning.

At the Shanghai Zoo, most animal exhibition areas are equipped with shading facilities, such as zebras with cement umbrellas, golden monkeys with small wooden houses, porcupines with stone caves, and civets with mud nests.

Animals without a "sunshade" are not worried. The breeders installed shading nets outdoors before it was hot, blocking ultraviolet rays and leaving a large area of shade.

A fierce man plunging into a private swimming pool is a luxurious enjoyment unique to African elephants, hippopotamuses, tigers, penguins, and other animals.

At the Shanghai Wildlife Park, African elephants roll and play in the pool, exchanging heat with cool water through exposed skin to dissipate heat. After swimming, the African elephant, who pursued delicacy, walked towards the "skincare product" prepared by the caregiver - a pile of soil. They stepped on it with their feet, poked it with their teeth, and then rolled up the fine soil with their nose, sprinkled it on their bodies, and sometimes even helped each other apply it.

South American tapir

Birds without private swimming pools are splashing in public bathhouses. Pelicans allow water to flow all over their bodies, wetting their feathers without oil, and then swinging them dry on the shore to prevent the wet feathers from affecting their flight.

Animals without swimming pools haven't had a chance to turn red, so the zoo has installed humidifiers in their homes. The exhibition areas of the ring tailed lemur, squirrel monkey, and macaw all have sprinkler devices, allowing you to enjoy a unique summer in the clouds and mist.

Larger animals like to have their keepers flush them with water directly. The elephant will first give way to one side, and when the caretaker indicates that this side is finished, they will consciously turn around to let the caretaker charge the other side. When the keeper washes the cage, the emus will also come up and take a bath.

For penguins, a summer without air conditioning is incomplete, even for temperate penguins who are relatively less afraid of heat.

At the Shanghai Wildlife Park, Magellan penguins from South America moved indoors. Although in hot weather, there is a large amount of blood flowing through the blood vessels under their exposed skin to assist in heat dissipation, there is still a risk of heatstroke if the temperature is too high. The indoor air conditioning of Penguin is set at 23 ℃ for a long time. During the three dog days, Penguins only come out to "operate" for a while in the morning when the temperature has not yet risen.

The giant panda, who is afraid of heat, was lured back to the air-conditioned room by the keeper after a brief activity in the morning, and ate cold and delicious bamboo and fruit skewers.