Enjoy a virtual visit to the Detroit Zoo with classes, webcams during pandemic shutdown

ROYAK OAK, Mich. (FOX 2) - While they've had to lay off more than 100 people at the Detroit Zoo, while some are on furlough, the work there has to continue.
 
About 2,400 animals depend on it. 

"They are not sick but they require specialized care 24 hours a day, seven days a week," said Ron Kagan, Detroit Zoo. "So we are operating like a healthcare system which means all of that staff is still working as hard as ever."

Employees are working hard but also working six feet apart and with masks on. They are watching the animals closely that are for the first time living at the zoo minus the 15,000 summer daily visits from humans. 

"They seem calm and they are healthy which is great," Kagan said. "We are actually doing some scientific analysis of whether we see any changes in their behavior, just like any other research project. It takes a little while to get results, but I can tell you there are animals that are taking more note of us, as staff, as we walk around. I think it's because they are used to seeing things in the environment and when they're on things they are going what's happening?"

They are losing money but they have funding for food and meds for the animals. But if you're curious about what's happening at the zoo, even though it's closed to the public, they are doing a lot digitally. 

Take a break from Zoom happy hours with your friends and take in a little nature instead. From classes to web cams, it's all online. So take a peek in. 
 
And when things do open back up on the 125-acre park ...

"We are assuming that attendance will be capped perhaps maximum 2,000 people a day, you know, letting in 300 to 400 people every few hours, it still gives people a lot of room, a lot more than 6 feet of distance," Kagan said. "We have more than 100 hand sanitizing stations and we will be doing full institutional cleaning every hour." 

But the question is, when the state will decide to give the green light for a slice of normalcy, a stroll through the zoo to happen again. Under the governor's six step plan, it maybe a while. 
  
For more information, go to the Detroit Zoo website HERE and the Facebook page HERE.