What happens to zoo animals during a hurricane?
When forecasters predict a hurricane is going to rain cats and dogs, residents batten down the hatches, but a special Florida resource has to take additional caution in protecting its animals from incoming storms.
Central Florida’s zoos face a threat of storm exposure during hurricane season, forcing zookeepers and staff to take emergency protocols in order to make sure animals stay safe.
Brevard Zoo is near a vulnerable area, only 10 miles west of Satellite Beach. Eight tropical storms or hurricane eyes have passed over Brevard County in the last 26 years with Tropical Storm Bertha the most recent storm. It passed directly over the zoo as a tropical depression just last May only a few days prior to the official start of hurricane season.
Brevard has 900 animals in its 56 acre facility ranging from giraffes and elephants to birds and monkeys. Of it residents, 90% of the animals have an auxiliary night home, which have been built
to meet hurricane construction standards, said Brevard Zoo spokeswoman Andrea Hill.
Gathering animals ahead of a hurricane, though, can be difficult and lead to some monkey business. Such was the case with one particular ring-tailed lemur named Noah when Hurricane Irma tore over the state in 2017. As Irma approached, the small animal refused to leave “lemur island,” a forested exhibit surrounded by water, said Brevard Zoo’s general curator Lauren Hinson.
Seven of the eight resident lemurs cooperated with staff, but Noah refused to climb down from his tree.
“We tried to get him into a crate and Noah said, ‘absolutely not.’ We ended up leaving him,” Hinson said.
Noah never left the tree while Irma cut through Central Florida with 74 mph maximum sustained winds. The irony of the lemur’s name was not lost on staff, all of whom were glad to see that the petite primate had survived, spotted in his tree after Irma cleared.
“He was just fine up in his tree,” Hinson said. “You know, sometimes our preparations are extra cautious even though some animals are made to handle this. We just try to make sure they’re OK.”
Monkeys and birds prove to be the most troubling to crate, while herding large animals into hurricane-code shelters runs much smoother, Hinson said.
“The cats are by far the easiest,” she said. “It’s the same as when we bring them in for the night. So it makes no difference to them if the storm outside is stronger.”
Brevard’s staff is like a well-oiled machine when it comes to hurricane preparation. There are three levels to its emergency operations.
First staff will make sure that all night homes are intact and carriers for cats have been acquired. The zoo stocks up supplies and gathers two weeks’ worth of food prior to June 1, the start of hurricane season. Next, when a storm has been predicted staff members will look for overgrown foliage or trees that could pose a potential threat to the compound and create
a means of escape should the foliage fall. Lastly, the zoo closes and a medical team is selected to stay at the compound in case of an emergency.
About 35 zookeepers work ahead of an incoming storm, usually the day before the storm is expected to impact the area, Hinson said.
“We don’t want to stress out the animals any more than we have to by keeping them in crates and carriers for three to five days,” she said. “So, we drive ourselves crazy the day before running around securing all of them, so they don’t have to feel crazy being stuck inside too long.”
Closing down and securing the zoo is a lot of work,
but opening the zoo in a timely fashion is even more exhausting, said Stephanie Williams, director of the Central Florida Zoo & Botanical Gardens in Seminole County.
“As soon as we get the all-clear, we’re calling our employees, our volunteers, to get this place back up and running,” Williams said. “It takes us two days to get ready before the storm, but we’ve got the zoo back in action within a day to generate revenue.”
Williams, who has worked at Central Florida Zoo for 20 years, said following a hurricane, the zoo receives phone calls fairly quickly with families looking for ways to entertain their children while the power is out.
Fortunately, neither zoo has ever experienced catastrophic damages from a hurricane, but both have endured severe flooding.
The St. Johns River flows next the Central Florida Zoo, and it has overflowed and flooded the zoo several times, notably after 2004 s Hurricane Charley and 2008 s Tropical Storm Fay.
“Fay did the most damage over the zoo. We saw the flooding damages to some of our buildings,” Williams said, but added that even then, the zoo was able to reopen fairly quickly.
Central Florida Zoo CEO Dino Ferri considers it a blessing the zoo has never been faced with a bigger threat. He’s experienced what it’s like to maintain a zoo during and after a 100-year storm beats down an area.
In 2005, Ferri worked in the reptile department of the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina tore through the below-sealevel community, causing the levees to break and flood the city.
“There were 12 of us staying with the animals during the storm. We slept in the reptile building. Media thought it was hilarious, us sleeping next to lizards and snakes,” Ferri said. “The zoo was without power and closed for months.”
At the time, the Audubon Zoo had 1,400 animals. Fortunately, Audubon was situated on a hill — one of New Orleans’ highest elevated areas, Ferri said. Most of the animals initially survived Katrina’s wrath, except for two otters and a raccoon, according to a McClatchy report. In the aftermath, though, most of the zoo’s fish and aquatic animals in its aquarium perished because of the loss of power.
Another casualty came in the form of lost revenue as Katrina wiped out all of Audubon’s operating funds and forced layoffs of nearly 600 employees, according to Audubon’s website. The zoo opened three months later on Thanksgiving weekend with help from volunteer zookeepers from all over the country, Ferri said.
“I’ve had my share of storms,” Ferri said. “Hopefully, we never see something like that here. But we’ll be ready when the next one comes.”
Q: I had been suffering with painful cracked fingertips for years. I even went to the doctor for it. However, the prescription creams I got didn’t work.
Then I decided to stop eating whole-wheat bread and other wheat-based products. Within two weeks, my fingertips were healed, and my digestive troubles resolved. I think I could be gluten-intolerant. That was a few years ago, and I have not had a single split fingertip since.
A: You should ask your doctor if you might be at risk for celiac disease. If you have been scrupulous about avoiding gluten, though, an antibody blood test for this condition will not be accurate. Even a biopsy may not tell the story. A genetic test might reveal your susceptibility, but it won’t determine if you actually have celiac disease.
Q: When I was a child, I frequently suffered from colds. My aunt would make a cough medicine of very softcooked onions with butter, brown sugar, ginger and a bit of vinegar. I liked it, and I always stopped coughing.
A: Onion cough medicine appears to be popular in many parts of the world. We have heard of various versions from India, Hungary and the North American frontier.
Some people sweeten the onion syrup with honey rather than brown sugar. There is some evidence to suggest that honey has antiviral activity (Molecules, Oct. 29, 2020).
A meta-analysis of six randomized controlled trials found that honey worked better than placebo to alleviate coughs in kids (Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, April 10, 2018). Honey should never be given to babies less than a year old because it might contain botulinum toxin.
Q: My husband went to a new nurse practitioner because of a stubborn itchy rash that would not go away.
The NP prescribed a steroid cream (triamcinolone). When he finally picked up the prescription, it was a large bag. Inside were 30 15-gram tubes of the cream. The NP had prescribed 450 grams of the cream.
When he tried to return the unopened tubes, they wouldn’t take them back. The pharmacist explained that 450 grams usually comes in a “tub” and they didn’t have that; hence the 30 tubes.
This doesn’t make sense as the rash is not all over his body. The NP told him at the visit to use the cream only as needed and only on the itchy spots. He is stuck with at least 28 unneeded tubes of this medication and doesn’t know what to do with them.
Why wouldn’t the NP have offered him a sample to see if it worked on his undiagnosed rash? What are his options with the excess cream?
A: A sample would have been appropriate. Pharmacies rarely, if ever, accept “returns” because they cannot resell pills or cream, even if in a sealed container. We fear your husband is stuck with unusable medicine.
It might be important to know what is causing your husband’s itchy rash. The steroid cream is a symptomatic treatment. A dermatologist might be in a better position to diagnose the underlying cause of his rash.
You may want to visit the website, www.SkinSight.com. The search engine enables people to view skin conditions that match their symptoms.
Aries (March 21-April 19):
Your workday may feel smoother than expected. Even when faced with small issues, you’re able to just breathe and find a quick solution. Stay away from anyone whose mood seems particularly negative so your day ends on a positive note.
Taurus (April 20-May 20):
Although travel is limited at this time, there’s still a way to get some of the cultural experiences you crave while at home. Today, tap into your inner chef and make a meal that will take you through foreign lands. This meal is meant to nourish both body and spirit.
Gemini (May 21-June 20):
Your ability to generate long-term wealth is energized today, and you may have a ton of ideas to get started. Try not to overwhelm yourself by researching too many things at once. Instead, pick one or two strategies, and identify all the action steps you will need to take to reach your goals.
Cancer (June 21-July 22):
Spending some quality time with a loved one will be fulfilling today, especially if it’s been a while since you’ve caught up. This may be someone you used to worry about, but through the conversation, you’ll learn that they are doing pretty well.
Leo (July 23-Aug. 22):
After a chaotic stretch, it’s finally time to bring some ease into your daily routine. Start the day by stretching your body, clearing your mind and finding three things to be grateful for. Beware that negative people may be attracted to your light — stay away from energy vampires.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Your analytical mind is always planning, but you need to give yourself a brain break so you don’t run out of gas. Try an activity today that allows you to use your gift of paying attention to details. The idea is to relax your brain while doing something that keeps your attention.
Libra (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
Projects around the house are calling your attention, and it would be great to enlist the help of a loved one to assist you. If they seem to be going through a hard time at the moment, sympathize with them, and hold space for their feelings. There’s no need to try to fix things for them. Practice listening.
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
You fully understand the importance of having a positive mindset when going through difficult times. Your knowledge and insight can be useful to people who are facing challenges. If you know someone who could use your advice, reach out to them and see if they are open.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
You thrive when connecting with friends and value the richness of your conversations; however, there may be a few “bad eggs” in your group who bring down the mood. It would be a good idea today to check in with them. They will appreciate you saying something.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
Conversations with loved ones flow easily today, inspiring you to share more than usual. Make sure you are maintaining your boundaries. Sometimes just sharing your past struggles and how you overcame them will be enough to help them figure it out.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
You naturally think about what everyone else needs, which means you may often unintentionally put yourself last. Spending time alone today to identify and sort through your thoughts and feelings will help you recenter. Pull out your journal to identify how you are truly feeling.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20):
Though you enjoy your alone time, spending time with others is good for your soul. The thought of having to coordinate schedules, choose an activity and agree on social distancing makes you want to stay in and watch TV instead. Don’t worry. No matter what, connecting will feel inspiring.