Shin Shin, Giant Panda cub born on June 12, 2017, underwent her fourth physical examination on July 2nd, from 10:54 AM to 11:09 AM. Her weight, which was 283.9 grams at the previous examination on June 22nd, has now increased to 607.9 grams. Her body length has grown from 17.6 centimeters to 23.4 centimeters.
My child has recently started to assume a position with their stomach facing upwards more often. To the right of the child is Shin Shin's lower right nipple (photographed July 1, 2017).
Shin Shin's parenting is going well, as she holds her baby and breastfeeds, and encourages defecation by letting the baby lick. The baby latches onto her nipple for about 1 to 10 minutes at a time, about 10 times a day. Of Shin Shin's two pairs of nipples, the baby had always latched onto the upper right one, but in the last week, it has started to latch onto the lower right nipple as well.
On July 2nd, while Shinshin was eating bamboo shoots, a staff member picked up the baby and performed a physical examination in the incubator. As the examination results showed, it is growing well. The area around its eyes, front and hind legs, and the band from its shoulders to its back, which previously just looked like black skin, now has black fur growing in the black areas and white fur growing in the white areas, and the density of the fur seems to be increasing. The corners of its mouth also appear slightly black.
The claws on its front paws are now clearly visible, and they catch on the sheets when I lift the baby in the incubator. Its eyelids still look somewhat "stripe-like," but eyes generally don't open until around 40 days of age (the physical examination on July 2nd showed it was 20 days old). I also checked its mouth, but no teeth were visible yet. Teeth generally seem to grow in around 80 days of age.
The pup showed no injuries, indicating that the mother is taking good care of it. Furthermore, the pup did not cry when it was taken away for the physical examination, and only cried when it was returned to its mother. The pup's growth is "standard," and its progress is going smoothly. The mother and pup are both in a stable condition.
When offered bamboo or other food while she is caring for her cub, Shin Shin will sometimes accept and eat it, and sometimes she will continue caring for her cub without accepting the food. In addition to bamboo and dwarf bamboo, Shin Shin is given about 3 kilograms of bamboo shoots per day. She is also given about 100 grams of "panda dumplings" per day, and a small amount of carrots. She drinks more than 1 liter of water. Her droppings amount to about 5 kilograms (normally it is around 20 kilograms).
July 3rd was Shin Shin's birthday, and she turned 12 years old. Usually, they give her a special cake and other presents, but this year she is currently raising her young. So there was no special cake, but animal keeper gave Shin Shin words of appreciation. The staff are still working around the clock, providing care and observation for her.
*The "bamboo shoots" mentioned in the text are not the kind of bamboo shoots that humans eat, but rather bamboo species that have not yet produced leaves and are in an immature growth stage.
