Arizona Zoo Animals Celebrate 'Summer Snow Day' with 10 Tons of Ice amid 109-Degree Heat

Elephants, tortoises, big cats and more enjoyed the faux winter wonderland at Phoenix Zoo on July 19

Phoenix Zoo knows how to keep things cool!

The zoo, located in Arizona's capital, recently treated its animals to an unconventional event: a "summer snow day."

There was not a snowflake in sight on Friday, July 19, at the Phoenix Zoo — where temperatures soared to 109 degrees, according to Weather Channel data — until 10 tons of ice arrived at the facility.

With 500 bags of ice from local company Mather Bros, Inc. and help from utility company Salt River Project, the zoo made heaps of snow. The zoo then dispersed the cold stuff among several habitats.

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For its third annual summer snow day event, the zoo welcomed visitors to enjoy free ice cream and watch the Phoenix Zoo's residents play in the snow. The zoo shared a Facebook video of its animals exploring the "summer snow day" for those who could not attend the event in person.

"Summers in Phoenix can get quite harsh, and it is a big focus of the Phoenix Zoo to ensure the animals stay cool all year round," the post read.

A rep for Phoenix Zoo tells PEOPLE that animals who participated in the icy festivities included Indu the elephant, Chutti the rhino, African painted dogs, cheetahs, leopards, tigers, primates, and more.

Other animals joined the snow day action, per the zoo’s video. In the clip, a hyena licks the snow, and a tortoise enjoys a watermelon in a faux winter wonderland.

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The "ice treats" provided to the animals ranged from "frozen fish-sicles for the tiger" and "blood-sicles for the African painted dogs" to "a 20-gallon ice treat with electrolyte-flavored drink mixed with frozen fruit" for Indu, the rep tells PEOPLE.

Speaking with Phoenix radio station KJZZ, Danielle Wong, the zoo's behavioral enhancement coordinator, laid out some potential benefits of a snow day.

"It could be a manner of cooling them down," Wong said of the animals. "It could be a manner of presenting it with food, and then they're engaging in those foraging behaviors."

Or, she added, "It could just be a manner of it's a totally new experience, and they really think it's cool."

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Wong also admitted that the special day is not every creature's cup of tea.

"Some of our animals, even if they were coming from a colder climate, they might go, I don't think so," she told KJZZ. "So, behavioral enrichment, it's totally up to the animals if they choose and want to participate in engaging with it."

"We just like to give them that opportunity," she added.

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