Shin Shin, Giant Panda at Ueno Zoo who gave birth on June 12, 2017 (Announcement), is taking good care of her cub. The cub is also healthy.
I've been breastfeeding at roughly the same frequency, and on June 16th, I observed more than 10 feedings between the afternoon and around noon on the 17th. I also gave her fluids twice on June 16th, around 5 PM and 11 PM.
Around 10 PM on June 16th, when Shinshin was given a bamboo shoot about 40 centimeters long, she held her baby tightly with one front paw while using the other front paw to grab and eat the bamboo shoot. At around 11:30 a.m. on June 17th, the cub was also fed bamboo shoots. It ate three bamboo shoots, each about 40 centimeters long. Although wild Giant Panda do not eat or drink immediately after giving birth, it is believed that providing an appropriate amount of food will increase the amount of breast milk they produce.
[Video] Shin Shin and her cub. The opening scene, which shows the cub's whole body, Taken around 11 PM on June 16, 2017. Another photo taken around 4 AM on June 17. The child's ears have a faint black color.
The mother and calf were in a stable condition, so we decided to conduct a second physical examination of the calf. At 5:44 PM on June 17th, while Shin Shin was lying down with her calf in her arms, animal keeper reached through a gap in the cage of the birthing room to gently pick up the calf and perform a physical examination. The calf appeared to be drinking plenty of breast milk and was in a calm state.
A child in an incubator (physical examination conducted from 5:44 PM to 6:04 PM on June 17, 2017)
Upon checking in the incubator, the baby was found to be in good health. Its weight was 147 grams on June 14th, and is now 178.9 grams. Its body length was 14.3 centimeters on June 14th, and is now 16.4 centimeters. It is growing well. Its sex is unknown. Its ears and the area around its eyes are faintly black, and some grayish areas are visible on its body.
[Video] A second physical examination was conducted for 20 minutes starting at 5:44 PM on June 17th. The video shows the baby calmly and still in the incubator.
After the physical examination, the baby was returned to the birthing room, and it let out a strong cry. Mother Shinshin quickly picked up the baby in her mouth, held it to her chest, and immediately began to care for it.
The baby and mother, Shinshin, are returned to the birthing room.
We are giving Shinshin water at the same pace, and she is drinking it all. She also ate all three bamboo shoots at 3am on June 18th, and another one at 10am. We have not observed any urination or defecation since we confirmed urination once on June 16th. Going forward, we will gradually adjust her nutritional management while taking her health condition into consideration.
We continue to provide 24-hour childcare services by our staff.
*The "bamboo shoots" mentioned in the text are not the kind of bamboo shoots that humans eat, but rather Madake bamboo that has not yet produced leaves and is in an immature growth stage.
