The clear liquor was added to the animals' water buckets as they began to feel the chill of temperatures as low as minus 30 degrees Celsius (minus 22 degrees Fahrenheit), trainer Andrei Kornilov told Gazeta newspaper.

"This is crisis weather for our animals. It is a climactic shock. We are warming them up with alcohol," he said at the Around the World circus in the city of Yaroslavl, 250 kilometres (155 miles) northeast of Moscow.

The tipple comprising a bottle of Russia's national drink stirred into a bucket of iced water had a rapid and sometimes unpredictable effect, he said.

"Yesterday we gave one of the elephants a bucket and the circus lost its heater -- the elephant just tore it off."

Zookeepers took a similar approach in the town of Lipetsk, south of Moscow, keeping macaque monkeys warm with sweet wine taken three times per day.

Meanwhile, the Russian people appear to have resorted to traditional seasonal practices to weather one of the most extreme cold spells in modern history.

Markets report record sales of lard, considered a fortifying food that goes well with vodka, while in the Siberian city of Tyumen local media reported a spike in sales of traditional felt boots and condoms.

But for hundreds of "morzhy" or "seals" the main response has been to cut a hole with a chainsaw or axe in the ice over their nearest river or pond and dive in.

The seasonal ritual celebrating the Orthodox Christian holiday marking Christ's baptism is also supposed to be healthy jolt for one' constitution.

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