Mei Xiang returning to normal after pseudopregnancy
Everybody around the world is truly disappointed that the National Zoo won’t have a new panda cub this year.
We were sure that all of our hard work and the help from our Chinese colleagues, as well as all the positive energy from panda fans everywhere somehow would have all come together for a positive outcome after many years of disappointment. Even in our disappointment, we have to step back and realize how much we learn each year, whether or not we have a giant panda cub. This knowledge helps us better care for these magnificent animals.
We are again starting to see glimpses of the Mei Xiang that we typically see during non-breeding seasons. Although the extreme heat is slowing down her return to “normal,” she is beginning to engage in her usual routine again. For example, Saturday morning, she ventured into the scale area to be weighed and to participate in a brief training session. She weighed 236 pounds, which is 19 pounds lighter than her last weight which was taken at the end of May, but this is a normal weight loss considering the amount of time she’s been denned up and eating less. She is regaining her interest in food, and is consuming all of her produce and leaf eater biscuits daily, along with increasing amounts of bamboo.
Mei Xiang is the one who will determine when she returns to her outdoor yards. We expect that some morning in the very near future, she will be awake and waiting for us by the door when we arrive in the morning, just like before the pseudopregnancy. At that time, we will let her set the pace for her return to her normal daily routine.; Once she begins sleeping outside of her den on a regular basis, we will begin deconstructing the enormous nest in her den, so that we can again thoroughly clean her enclosure. Then life will go back to normal at the Panda House, and we will eagerly await the next breeding season.
Source: National Zoo
