Cute like a new-born baby! Panda cub is starting to cut his teeth and find his bearings during the latest check-up at the San Diego Zoo, November, 2012.
Full Story:
Xiao Liwu, the sixth Giant Panda born at the San Diego Zoo, had his weekly exam on Tuesday.
The cub weighed nearly 11 pounds and measured 25-an-a-half inches.
During the exam, a zoo veterinarian was able to see and feel several teeth in the bear's mouth.
[Matt Kinney, Senior Veterinarian, San Diego Zoo]:
"The big findings from today's exam were that we were able to see teeth erupting in the oral cavity."
Animal care staff set out a ball, a chew toy, and some bamboo on the floor so the cub would have different things to explore.
The vet noted that while the giant panda is crawling better than he was, they think he still isn't able to navigate the uneven ground of the panda exhibit.
[Matt Kinney, Senior Veterinarian, San Diego Zoo]:
"He is not at the point that he is coordinated enough to walk on uneven ground. That's the reason that we are going to hold off on letting him out of the den at this time."
The cub will practice his crawling and walking skills before him and his mother are given access to the public exhibit.
Only 1,600 giant pandas are believed to exist in the wild. Pandas are on the endangered species list, mostly from human hunting and loss of habitat.
The San Diego Zoo is one of the organizations doing research and breeding to restore the endangered species to a healthy population.
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6 июн 2013
