The deer family cosies up in their haystack enclosure at Tata zoo on Tuesday. Picture by Bhola Prasad

Temperatures are tumbling and Jamshedpur’s Tata Steel Zoological Park is going the whole hog to keep its 400-odd denizens cosy in the harsh months to follow.

Room heaters, jute curtains and haystacks are in place across the 73-acre animal kingdom, which is the only private zoo in the country. Carnivores, especially the big cats, are being served extra pound of flesh, while vitamins have been added to the diet of all birds, reptiles and mammals.

“The mercury is dipping and soon it will get very cold. We cannot take chances. Elaborate arrangements have been made to keep the animals warm. Heaters have been installed inside tiger, lion, leopard, sloth bear and hyena cells, while hay beds have been made for the deer family,” said zoo director Bipul Chakravarty.

If very meaty lunch platter for carnivores is helping increase their rate of metabolism, jute-plugged windows and ventilators are keeping cages warm for most birds and mammals. Zoo officials are further using blowers to keep all enclosures dry. “All these are our routine winter preparations,” Chakravarty said.

With night readings in Jamshedpur hovering around 15°C, the zoo director has specifically instructed animal keepers to maintain an optimum temperature of around 20°C in cells. Night guards have been told to switch on heaters at 9pm while the same could be turned off after daybreak.

“To keep pheasants warm, we are using bulbs in their cages. Pruning of trees near gharial and crocodile moats has been completed. We want the reptiles to get adequate sunlight during winter,” he added.

Zoo vet Manik Palit, on his part, is keeping close watch on diet for different species.

“Supply of buffalo meat has been increased. Vitamins are also being given to carnivores. Extra fodder, vitamins and minerals are part of herbivore diet. Seasonal fruits are reserved for monkeys,” he said.

“Animals in the wild can adapt to ambient temperature by scouting for warm hideouts. This is not the case with their captive cousins. They are solely dependent on arrangements we make. So, our winter arrangements are special,” Palit added.

Zoo officials maintained that the winter routine would be followed till mid-February. And, if it didn’t get warmer by then, the extra cover and dietary supplements would continue.