SAN DIEGO ZOO VETS SAY PANDA CUB CLOSE TO OPENING HIS EYES

October 1, 2003

Interview with Lee Young, DVM, associate veterinarian at the San Diego Zoo.

With the slight movement of his eyelids, the San Diego Zoo's male panda cub is believed to be getting closer to seeing. Today at the SBC Giant Panda Research Station the Zoo's veterinary staff conducted its weekly exam on the unnamed panda cub and noticed significant movement of his eyelids and detected the opening of his ears as well as the development of canine teeth.

"We're seeing the normal range of development for a panda cub," said Lee Young, associate veterinarian at the Zoo who performed the exam. "Week after week he's getting a little heavier and stronger."

The 6-week-old cub now measures 16 inches (41 centimeters) long and weighs 4.24 pounds (1.92 kilograms). The cub's current body measurements are slightly higher in comparison to Hua Mei's growth as an infant in 1999.