Circus keepers save frozen elephants with buckets of vodka

PA

Polish circus keepers saved two elephants from a Siberian blizzard by giving them ten litres of vodka, mixed with warm water.

The Express reports that the elephants were forced out of their wooden trailer when a heater caught fire as they travelled to Minsk.

The elephants had to stand outside in temperatures of -40C while firefighters put out the blaze - and their keepers decided that a stiff drink would help to warm them up.

A spokesman for the fire brigade said: "The elephants were huge but really friendly. As soon as they were told to go out into the cold they obeyed. They had to spend a bit of time shivering in the blizzard while we were putting the fire out."

Polish circus official Leonid Labo added: "We mixed ten litres of vodka with warm water, which kept the chill at bay."

The two elephants, Magda, 45, and Jenny, 48, escaped virtually unscathed. A vet who examined them said that the tips of the ears were a little frostbitten but the vodka seemed to have helped save them from hypothermia - although they did seem to get a little merry.

BBC News reports that one official said: "They started roaring like they were in the jungle! Perhaps they were happy."

The elephants spent the night in the heated garage of a local college before continuing their journey the next day.

Scientists say that, as with humans, alcohol can make animals feel warmer even though it actually lowers their core body temperature.

However, Novosibirsk zoo director Rostislav Shilo told Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper that the elephants were not harmed or intoxicated by the vodka and that without it they would have died of hypothermia or pneumonia.

Click on the image below to see Lapland's winter wonderland...

%VIRTUAL-Gallery-171614%

Related articles:

Monkey in shearling coat surprises shoppers at Ikea

Dolphins show off cute and unusual talent