IT IS ILLEGAL! So, next time you see a 'cute' video of a red panda, or any other endangered species, being kept as a pet please don't share it. It may be innocent, however the more shares and views these videos get, the more demand there is for people to take them from the wild.
Giant pandas are docile overall and often lower their heads or shade their faces with their front paws in an attempt to conceal themselves when they come across a human for the first time. They seldom attack people or other animals, choosing to try and evade conflict first.
Panda's can most certainly be tamed, if you tame it right. However, the Panda is a wild animal. Pandas have been wild animals for a very long time and have been introduced to the world very recently, few decades back.
First of all, although they are undeniably cute and cuddly-looking, you wouldn't want to get too close. “Giant pandas' teeth, claws, fleas, ticks and mites mean you probably don't want to give them a hug,” according to Steven Price, Canada's senior conservation director at the World Wildlife Fund.
Pandas cost about $500,000 to care for annually, according to Dennis Kelly, chief executive of Zoo Atlanta, one of four American zoos that houses pandas. The zoo's second most expensive animal, the elephant, require just one fifth as much.
Why giant pandas are so important. Giant pandas help to keep their mountain forests healthy by spreading seeds in their droppings, which helps vegetation to thrive. The Giant panda's forested habitat is also important for local people – for food, income and fuel for cooking and heating.
Scientists are not sure how long giant pandas live in the wild, but they are sure it is shorter than lifespans in zoos. They estimate that lifespan is about 15-20 years for wild pandas and about 30 years for those in human care. Chinese scientists have reported zoo pandas as old as 35.
IT IS ILLEGAL!
If someone was caught with a live red panda they could be fined or even sent to prison!
Pandas like their alone time—just not all the time
There's a common misconception that giant pandas are loners, using their heightened sense of smell to avoid other pandas in the wild, only meeting up during mating season. It's true that pandas like their alone time, but these bears aren't actually solitary creatures.
For the safety of pandas and panda fans, holding a panda is suspended.
While pandas are regarded as cuddly, quiet animals, they certainly have a dangerous side when they feel threatened. They're solitary creatures and like to avoid confrontation, the World Wildlife Fund reports, but have sharp claws and teeth and may attack to protect themselves or their cubs if provoked.
There used to be more pandas at zoos around the world, including St. Louis, but China's population boom and several famines after World War II that led to hunting them for food led to far lower numbers. In the early 1960's China set up a nature reserve to protect the Giant Panda.
To alert other pandas to their presence, males mark territory with scent glands on their feet and at the base of their tail. The glands secrete a colorless liquid that is pungent to pandas, but odorless to humans.
Bamboo contains very little nutritional value so pandas must eat 12-38kg every day to meet their energy needs. But they do branch out, with about 1% of their diet comprising other plants and even meat. While they are almost entirely vegetarian, pandas will sometimes hunt for pikas and other small rodents.
In a recent study involving 151 carnivores, the panda earned 5th place. With a bite force of almost 1300 Newtons, only lions (1315 N), grizzlies (1410 N), tigers (1472 N), and polar bears (1647 N) beat the panda.
And like other types of bears, giant pandas are curious and playful, especially when they're young. In zoos, they like to play with enrichment items like piles of ice or sawdust, puzzles made of bamboo with food inside, and different scents like spices.
Pandas can cry with their voices but they can't cry tears. But they can't cry emotional tears; humans are the only species that do this.
The National Zoo says "pandas are adept climbers" that climb and subsequently fall as a form of play.
Pandas have very low levels of the main thyroid hormones T4 and T3. We were able to trace these low hormone levels to a unique mutation in the panda genome, which affects a critical gene involved in thyroid hormone synthesis. People who have low thyroid hormone levels often complain that they feel cold.
Here is a bear hug! Adorable pandas give their lonely friend (or busy keeper) a cuddle to show their love.
Apparently, there are only a few panda's in Japan, so you can't touch these like you can in Sichuan. over a year ago. No...they are in cages.
Panda cannot be kept as pet, mainly for the simple reason that it is an endangered species. Ironically, the giant panda is also, by the way, the mascot of the WWF.
The world's oldest male giant panda under captivity, An An, was euthanized at 35 years old, equivalent of 105 years for humans.
At 31 years old, Shuan Shuan is currently the oldest living panda in the world. She was also one of the first pandas born in captivity outside of China. Additionally, Shuan Shuan is one of only a few pandas that does not belong to the Chinese government since she was born at the Chapultepec Zoo.
They like to keep it regular. On average, pandas poo 40 times a day.