Giant panda Hua Hua Photo: VCG

How much do Chinese people love giant pandas? Even the continues hot weather cannot stop them from watching the cute giant pandas since the beginning of the summer. Worried that the hot weather may cause the "national treasure" uncomfortable, many citizens and tourists have recently proposed that the park can add ice beds and other cooling facilities for giant pandas.

In response to netizens' enthusiasm, staff members of the Beijing Zoo said on Wednesday that ice beds have been installed for giant pandas before, but the use rate is not high; At present, the panda outdoor stadium has a pool, sunshade and air conditioning. In addition, the zoo also placed ice, summer sleeping mat and provided chilled bamboo shoots to protect giant pandas' health.

During the summer vacation, tourists  came in an endless stream to visit giant pandas. "It's so hot, I feel like I'm melting," some tourists signed. "If there is an ice bed outside, pandas will be more willing to go outside," others suggested.

The refrigeration principle of the ice bed is roughly the same as that of the household refrigerator, and the temperature can be adjusted by itself, with a minimum of minus 30 C. According to the zoo, the staff members will also regularly place ice cubes in the ice bed to achieve continuous cooling effect. 

"We have installed ice beds in the outdoor playground before, but keepers have observed over the years that the use rate of ice beds is relatively low," a staff member said. At present, the panda outdoor playground has a pool, sunshade, and if necessary, the zoo will cool down by sprinkling and spraying water. Meanwhile, the interior is equipped with air conditioning, and when the temperature exceeds 26 C, the keeper will open the door to let the panda in and out freely.