Memphis Zoo Memphis Zoo News

[Zoofan15]

Update: Ya Ya leaving late April:

It’s been announced Ya Ya will remain at Memphis until the end of the month:

Memphis Zoo holds farewell party for panda set to return to China

Ya Ya will remain in Memphis until the end of the month, and the China exhibit will continue after she returns to China. Other animals in the exhibit include Pere David deer, Asian small-clawed otters and white-naped cranes. For now, the zoo is exploring plans for the panda habitat and reflecting on 20 years of Le Le and Ya Ya.

 

[GeeZee]

Hi all,

I was going to make a thread on this but I see there is one here.

Ya Ya’s condition has been discussed already, and while she may genuinely have a skin condition as opposed to being abused - I do feel that there are some bad apples at that zoo. For instance, I saw a video of a keeper aggressively throwing bamboo in her enclosure and behaving very badly, what do you all think of this?

Maybe he was having a bad day, but it doesn’t look favourable on the zoo…

As well as this, in general she doesn’t seem to have that much bamboo in her enclosure (and allegedly it’s stale) and in general the enclosure looks rather bleak, especially compared to other Zoos such as Edinburgh where I do truly believe they treat the pandas extremely well.

 

[TinoPup]

Hi all,

I was going to make a thread on this but I see there is one here.

Ya Ya’s condition has been discussed already, and while she may genuinely have a skin condition as opposed to being abused - I do feel that there are some bad apples at that zoo. For instance, I saw a video of a keeper aggressively throwing bamboo in her enclosure and behaving very badly, what do you all think of this?

Maybe he was having a bad day, but it doesn’t look favourable on the zoo…

As well as this, in general she doesn’t seem to have that much bamboo in her enclosure (and allegedly it’s stale) and in general the enclosure looks rather bleak, especially compared to other Zoos such as Edinburgh where I do truly believe they treat the pandas extremely well.

We're not doing this. As discussed already, the zoo takes excellent care of her. Zoologists from China constantly monitor her. If there were actual problems they would have come over to check on her and potentially take her back ahead of schedule. They are the experts on panda care, not people on social media.

 

[GeeZee]

We're not doing this. As discussed already, the zoo takes excellent care of her. Zoologists from China constantly monitor her. If there were actual problems they would have come over to check on her and potentially take her back ahead of schedule. They are the experts on panda care, not people on social media.

But they have come over to check on her since Le Le’s passing and the team from China did evaluate her too, how do you explain the video of that keeper? That is no way to behave.

 

[TinoPup]

But they have come over to check on her since Le Le’s passing and the team from China did evaluate her too, how do you explain the video of that keeper? That is no way to behave.

Yes, because Le Le died and because she's getting ready to go back to China and they needed to assess if it was safe for her to travel at her age. Of course they would send a team over for both of those things.

 

[Aardwolf]

I don’t know if I would consider aggressive bamboo handling to be too problematic. I had handling that stuff and always fling it away as hard as I can

 

[GeeZee]

I don’t know if I would consider aggressive bamboo handling to be too problematic. I had handling that stuff and always fling it away as hard as I can

Maybe so, but going by what I’ve seen at other zoos that have pandas I’ve never seen that sort of behaviour, considering the zoo is already facing scrutiny (rightly or wrongly) It seems a bit unnecessary, at least to me.

Needing to break bamboo up is one thing but videos out there of some of Ya Ya’s keepers kicking and throwing bamboo across the enclosure and it just seems a bit overkill.

 

[TinoPup]

Maybe so, but going by what I’ve seen at other zoos that have pandas I’ve never seen that sort of behaviour, considering the zoo is already facing scrutiny (rightly or wrongly) It seems a bit unnecessary, at least to me.

Needing to break bamboo up is one thing but videos out there of some of Ya Ya’s keepers kicking and throwing bamboo across the enclosure and it just seems a bit overkill.

The only sites/people I can find referencing this video are Chinese "news" ones. How about we support a fantastic zoo doing the best for a species instead of complaining about how they toss a piece of food that in no way has any impact on the animal?

 

[GeeZee]

The only sites/people I can find referencing this video are Chinese "news" ones. How about we support a fantastic zoo doing the best for a species instead of complaining about how they toss a piece of food that in no way has any impact on the animal?

Well, you can’t deny they are real videos direct from their own “panda cam” which I’ve noticed recently can now only be viewed when the Zoo is open.

It’s not just one, there are a number of different videos showing this behavior of the keepers and while I don’t actually use social media but a quick search on Google comes up with several users posting them, I suspect there are more if you search within the sites themselves.

Regardless, there’s no need to be so defensive, I was just posing the question as - maybe I’m wrong - but nobody has discussed this particular issue regarding the keepers yet.

If I didn’t think Zoos in general were a force for good not least in terms of conservation and everything else, Im sure I wouldn’t be on a website entitled “zoochat”.

 

[TinoPup]

Well, you can’t deny they are real videos direct from their own “panda cam” which I’ve noticed recently can now only be viewed when the Zoo is open.

It’s not just one, there are a number of different videos showing this behavior of the keepers and while I don’t actually use social media but a quick search on Google comes up with several users posting them, I suspect there are more if you search within the sites themselves.

Regardless, there’s no need to be so defensive, I was just posing the question as - maybe I’m wrong - but nobody has discussed this particular issue regarding the keepers yet.

If I didn’t think Zoos in general were a force for good not least in terms of conservation and everything else, Im sure I wouldn’t be on a website entitled “zoochat”.

Nobody has discussed the "issue" because it's not an issue to begin with. As I said previously, we're not doing this. Memphis is a fantastic zoo and she receives amazing care. Stop believing nonsense.

Plenty of anti-zoo people have joined this website to try and start trouble before.

 

[lintworm]

Well, you can’t deny they are real videos direct from their own “panda cam” which I’ve noticed recently can now only be viewed when the Zoo is open.

It’s not just one, there are a number of different videos showing this behavior of the keepers and while I don’t actually use social media but a quick search on Google comes up with several users posting them, I suspect there are more if you search within the sites themselves.

Regardless, there’s no need to be so defensive, I was just posing the question as - maybe I’m wrong - but nobody has discussed this particular issue regarding the keepers yet.

If I didn’t think Zoos in general were a force for good not least in terms of conservation and everything else, Im sure I wouldn’t be on a website entitled “zoochat”.

Don't believe everything you see on the internet... There has been a hate campaign raised by some Chinese against Memphis and their panda care. That campaign wasn't inspired by any wrongdoing but by anti-American sentiments...

 

[GeeZee]

Ya Ya’s going back today, due back in Shanghai tommorrow afternoon. I must of missed when they announced she was going today, I thought it was next week.

Hope she has a safe journey, anyone know if Memphis will be getting more pandas or what will become of her (and Le Le’s) enclosure?

 

[MonkeyBat]

Strange how public opinion on pandas has changed so rapidly. People were so distraught over San Diego losing them, now people are distraught that Memphis, DC, and Atlanta still have them

 

[idiosyncrasy]

Ya Ya’s going back today, due back in Shanghai tommorrow afternoon. I must of missed when they announced she was going today, I thought it was next week.

Hope she has a safe journey, anyone know if Memphis will be getting more pandas or what will become of her (and Le Le’s) enclosure?

I am NOT optimistic about YaYa going back because she is going back to Beijing Zoo. The zoo bred a lot of pandas in the past, and they all DIED except for the four that traveled abroad. Among all the panda deaths are YaYa's 11 siblings. I would hope that she would have a fun and enriching remainder of her life, but the chances are low.

 

[SwampDonkey]

anyone know if Memphis will be getting more pandas or what will become of her (and Le Le’s) enclosure?

It seems nearly impossible that they will get more pandas for a number of reasons. First, the AZA is largely against new panda imports and the system that is used to get them here. Second, it was kind of a fluke that Memphis had them in the first place. Third, public opinion is against new panda imports right now.

As for the enclosure, we don't know. My guess is red panda, but that is purely a guess. Columbus has sloth bears IIRC where panda were originally planned in Asia Quest (although I could be wrong about that), San Diego has red pandas.

 

[Jacob F]

It seems nearly impossible that they will get more pandas for a number of reasons. First, the AZA is largely against new panda imports and the system that is used to get them here. Second, it was kind of a fluke that Memphis had them in the first place. Third, public opinion is against new panda imports right now.

As for the enclosure, we don't know. My guess is red panda, but that is purely a guess. Columbus has sloth bears IIRC where panda were originally planned in Asia Quest (although I could be wrong about that), San Diego has red pandas.

Maybe they could replace them with Asian black bears.

 

[StoppableSan]

Maybe they could replace them with Asian black bears.

Phase out species, bud.

P.S. Hate to be a mini-mod about it, but speculation can be its own thing. If I have to deal with it, you have to deal with it.

 

[Jacob F]

Phase out species, bud.

P.S. Hate to be a mini-mod about it, but speculation can be its own thing. If I have to deal with it, you have to deal with it.

I understand. What do you think should replace the pandas?

 

[pachyderm pro]

I understand. What do you think should replace the pandas?

I suggest reading the second part of that post. Speculation and guessing games can be fun, but this is not the place.

P.S. Hate to be a mini-mod about it, but speculation can be its own thing. If I have to deal with it, you have to deal with it.

 

[GeeZee]

Politics aside, it is a shame how the tide has turned a bit when it comes to Pandas. I can’t help but feel because of their rarity they do bring a lot of uniqueness and charm to any zoo and I’m sure financially too (despite the fee).

While animals such as Lions, Meerkats, even Red Pandas etc are great to see, many zoos have them - but very few have Giant Pandas. I speak from a UK perspective, but the pandas in Edinburgh Zoo will be returning soon too sadly, and it’s unlikely they will get them again either.

Several of these zoos had their loans extended during covid of course, so that’s also partly why seemingly they are all being returned around the same time, Smithsonian is another one too I believe.