Zoo Animal Keepers in Staten Island Let Animals Roam Free During Lockdown

Since the news of a tiger at the Bronx Zoo contracting the coronavirus—likely transmitted by a zookeeper—the zoo has been on high alert. 35-year-old Sarrah Kaye, the director and veterinarian of the Staten Island Zoo, said, 'The pandemic has been a benefit in letting some animals roam free.'

We closed our doors to the public on March 15th, and some animals started to miss the visitors. When the zoo keepers walked by, the spider monkeys and leopards—they really loved watching the visitors—would get excited.

Because there were no visitors, we were able to let some animals, such as the anteaters and armadillos, explore the zoo. Our South American hornbill—a two-foot-tall bird—walked across the reptiles' wings, walking from exhibit to exhibit, like a person, looking at everything.

Although the zoo keepers are considered essential, we now only have half our staff. Because there are fewer people here, we can only focus on essential animal care and cannot do additional projects, such as redesigning exhibits or training kangaroos to stand still for vaccinations. We don't have that opportunity yet.

Regarding serious concerns, we are worried about certain species being vulnerable to the coronavirus, like the tiger at the Bronx Zoo. We don't have a tiger, but we took preventative measures with our far eastern leopards: keepers worked with them while wearing masks and gloves, otters, skunks, bats, and primates also wore masks and gloves, based on our understanding of SARS and potential animal transmission.

But this is primarily a human-to-human disease—animals and pets do not play a major role in epidemiology. So far, thankfully, all of our animals are healthy.