Closed since March 15, the Beauval ZooParc can count on caretakers to take care of the animals that reside there. But between employees on partial unemployment and a complicated future in tourism, questions arise. To find out more about this very special period, we contacted Rodolphe Delord, director of ZooParc and Nicolas Leroux, animal chief, by telephone.
Empty aisles, a reduced number of employees and the simple noise of 10,000 animals residing on 40 hectares of the site. With the Covid-19, the Beauval ZooParc, in Loir-Et-Cher, lives a strange period to say the least. A unique situation explained to us by Rodolphe Delord, director of ZooParc and Nicolas Leroux, animal chief.
In what ways did the park react to the coronavirus?
Rodolphe Delord : There were several phases, a first period when the ZooParc could remain open. Then we decided to close after the announcements on Saturday March 14. The priority today is the health security of our teams, our animals and their maintenance, which must remain at the same level as before the closure of the park. And of course, the safety of our future visitors, as soon as we can open again, as soon as possible, we hope. We have 400 people on partial unemployment: reception staff, staff of the 4 hotel complexes, restaurant staff, shop staff, part of the communication, pedagogy and education teams. On the other hand, we have kept 100% of our teams of animal and veterinary trainers.
Nicolas Leroux: Closing a business that lives on 100% of its entrances is never easy to hear. In the animal service, everyone comes to work but less days. This represents 120 people. There are rotations so that the treatment teams do not meet, in case there is an announcement of coronavirus in one of the colleagues. For each service, there are at least two teams. For example, we have 7 elephant trainers, so we made three teams. The day is a bit busier because we are in limited numbers. But the main thing is to take care of the animals, that they are happy.
The sanitary rules, to be respected, are surely already used by the trainers, by their profession with animals, right? The use of gloves for example.
Rodolphe Delord : Yes, the trainers are already used to the sanitary rules because there are already other diseases which must not be transmitted between humans and animals. However, to date, there has been no known transmission of coronavirus from human to animal and vice versa. We are calm about the maintenance of our animals. Our priority is their well-being. Our residents must in no case suffer from the closure of the park.
Nicolas Leroux: The advantage, if I can say, is that in our daily and normal work, we already have health barriers in place. The new thing is with our collaborators, so we respect all the precautions (hand washing and distance). I am not afraid to come to work because I do not see myself saying to myself: I stay at home to protect myself and I let the animals starve. I'm lucky, my wife understands my way of thinking because she also works for the park. At the moment, there is no case of Covid-19 among my colleagues.
Have the animals changed their behavior? The absence of the public …
Rodolphe Delord : The animals are surprised not to see an audience. I think of great apes or felines. They are used to seeing a lot of people. They always see their trainers but indeed some must wonder what is going on.
Nicolas Leroux: We asked ourselves the question, how the animals were going to react and finally we don't have the impression that there are a lot of reactions.
What is the atmosphere that emanates from the ZooParc, from the emptiness?
Rodolphe Delord : I think we are privileged ultimately because we have the park for us. The weather is nice. I enjoy walking down the aisles to see the animals. But there is also sadness, because there is obviously less life: the restaurants, the shops, the reception areas. Everything is at a standstill. Except animal care.
Nicolas Leroux: It’s sad and it’s pretty weird. I have been working at ZooParc de Beauval for 6 years and this is the first time I have seen empty paths during the day. At first, we find that a little "funny" and then finally after a while it is less attractive, we will say. Among colleagues we also say that we are lucky to be in a rural area and to have a professional activity outside. Animals bring us morale.
The equatorial dome opened a short time ago, is this bad timing economically speaking?
Rodolphe Delord : It’s a lot of millions of euros shortfall, for sure. Fortunately, the Beauval ZooParc is a large establishment with 1000 employees in high season. We opened the dome on February 8th, so we had a lot of visitors, we got ahead, luckily. Our wish is to open as soon as possible. We are trying to cope despite the very large shortfall in March and April. It now all depends on when the park will safely welcome new visitors.
Nicolas Leroux: It’s a shame that it’s happening now because it’s a big novelty with public appeal. We hope that this health crisis passes quickly and that we return to normal functioning.
How can you cope with this loss of money?
Rodolphe Delord : We are a private establishment so clearly we are going to shift, like any business, the costs of repaying bank loans by six months. We will manage our cash flow with our banks so that we can continue. We do not want this closure to have a significant impact on our future investments.
Life goes on in the park, have there been any births?
Rodolphe Delord : There are births every day, a little raptor this morning. Life is still present in Beauval, we are constantly posting information on our social networks. Our visitors are delighted.
Nicolas Leroux: Indeed we have births, a baby maki catta, for example. Life goes on as you say.
What do you want to say to your visitors?
Rodolphe Delord : Come back to see us when it is possible. Some visitors with membership cards are frustrated that they normally come several times a month, even weeks. We have regulars. Our audience loves us, they love our animals and they love to walk around our house. We hope that the government will do its best with a massive stimulus package for tourism after this crisis. Domestic tourism is very important because I think that foreign tourists will not come to our country this year. Tourism is an important, non-offshoring economy that represents 8% of GDP in France. Today, we are strongly impacted by this virus so we are awaiting this recovery plan.
Nicolas Leroux: We look forward to seeing you again!