The Hunter Region is experiencing heatwave conditions like many parts of New South Wales today. Local wildlife parks are taking precautions to help animals stay cool in the heat.
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00:00 It's dry, there's a warm breeze and it's almost hit 40 degrees here in the Hunter Valley.
00:07 For many people they'll stay inside in the air conditioning or take a dip in the pool
00:11 or at the beach today, but that's not the case for the animals here at the Hunter Valley
00:15 Wildlife Park.
00:17 Now the animals that are here, the lions, the giraffes, the spider monkeys, the kangaroos,
00:22 they're all picked specifically so they can cope with the weather here in the Hunter Valley.
00:26 So they are used to a hot day, but the keepers here do make sure they get a few extra things
00:31 on days like today to make sure they stay cool and comfortable.
00:35 What we can do is just try to drop the temperature a little bit.
00:39 So obviously using things like sprinklers like you can see now and then adding interactive
00:44 food items that will hopefully cool them down.
00:46 Not far from here is the Hunter Valley Vineyards and grape picking is underway for the current
00:51 vintage.
00:52 The grape pickers were out early this morning to avoid the heat and we're going to be knocking
00:56 off before lunchtime, before that 40 degree temperature does hit.
01:01 Now Hunter Health officials are warning people to try and stay cool so they can avoid heat
01:07 exhaustion or heat stroke.
01:08 So the warnings are make sure you drink plenty of water, limit the amount of caffeine and
01:13 alcohol you might be drinking today and stay in a cool place.
01:18 If you don't have air conditioning at home, head to your local shops or the library where
01:22 you can try and stay cool.
01:24 Now some of the symptoms to look out for if you are out in the heat today, you might have
01:29 a bit of a headache, you might be feeling a little bit dizzy or very thirsty.
01:33 Those are the early signs of heat exhaustion so try and stay on top of those.
01:38 Now as for the animals here, I'm sure they'll be staying under the shade of a tree and looking
01:43 out for the keepers today when they drop in an ice block to keep them cool.
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