Why, during winter season, are elephants often not outside?
These animals are from tropical environments and do not tolerate cold weather well. Temperatures must be in the 50’s or higher for them to be outside. In cool temperatures the elephants are often given what the Zoo Keepers call “access.” Access means that the elephant can choose if it wants to go outside or stay in. The floors inside the elephant’s night house are heated with warm water that is pumped through pipes in the floors. 14. Questions about the Sissy the elephant: Answer: The incident occurred in 1999 and we now have a whole new methodology for elephant care which is called protected contact. Now only positive reinforcement is used and the animals have free choice to respond to our keepers requests or not. No coercive methods are used, period. The El Paso Zoo has, for it’s size, one of the best and most complete elephant facilities in the country. Staff have contact, but at no time are keepers in the same space as our elephants. We feel that it is much safer for people and a b
