Memphis Zoo officials are rebutting claims from a group of ”international panda fans” concerned for the well-being of the zoo’s two giant pandas, Le Le and Ya Ya.
A change.org petition and a letter-writing campaign by Panda Voices, a group “brought together by the ongoing mistreatment of pandas Lele (sic) and Yaya (sic) at Memphis Zoo,” has mobilized thousands across the globe. Dozens of form letters have been sent to the Memphis Flyer newsroom.
“I am informed that YaYa (sic) and LeLe (sic) has (sic) been suffering from hunger, incompatible low-quality bamboos, lack of enrichments, and excessive caging time, causing them to be underweight and malnourished,” reads a form-letter submission sent this week from Judith Echeverria in Miami, Florida. “From 2007 to 2012, the zoo has performed four artificial inseminations on YaYa (sic) which ended with four abortions and caused irreversible damage to her body.”
Memphis Zoo leaders said Wednesday morning that they have ”been in an ongoing conversation with this group who has passionately voiced their concerns over our pandas here at the Memphis Zoo.”
”I assure you that both pandas are monitored by keeper and veterinary staff daily,” said Jessica Faulk, a zoo spokeswoman said in a statement. “We are also in constant communication with our colleagues in China, as well as [the Association of Zoos and Aquariums], and send them monthly updates.”
While the letter and the group’s website provide links they say proves their allegations of mistreatment at Memphis Zoo, they don’t clearly substantiate any of their claims. For example, for proof of Ya Ya’s “four abortions” that caused “irreversible damage to her body,” the group points to a 2012 web post from Giant Panda Global sourced from a story from The Commercial Appeal. In it, Ya Ya was 11 and had been inseminated four times since her first fertility period when she was six “including a miscarriage in March 2010.”
The group asserts Le Le has ”had dental problems over the years.” Its proof comes “from the videos” in which “he seems to have difficulty in biting and chewing bamboo.” Neither the letter nor the website make clear what videos they reference. The zoo runs three “panda cams,” showing both indoor enclosures and the pandas’ outdoor space.
From the panda cam, Panda Voices claimed it found evidence of “self abuse” as Ya Ya can be seen “banging her head on the floor over and over.” While there’s no context for Ya Ya’s behavior, Panda Voices claims its enough to show “stereotypical behavior” from “excessive caging that could cause appetite loss.”
From videos and photos online, groups have claimed that the zoo’s pandas look unwell. A photo of Ya Ya went viral in 2019 after online commenters suggested she looked skinny. Zoo officials told WREG at the time that the panda was healthy but was just showing her age. Newer claims had the zoo issue a seven-minute Facebook video update on the panda’s condition in February.
In its new campaign, Panda Voices looks to the discoloration and patchiness of the of the pandas’ fur and claims, for Ya Ya, the panda has ”been tortured by parasite infection for over a decade, causing extreme itching and shedding. Her skin disease started in 2008 and 13 years later it has spread throughout her entire body.”
Zoo officials said the bear does have a skin condition but it does not cause “itching or severe discomfort.”
”Our veterinary team reports the appearance of Ya Ya’s skin and coat varies considerably throughout the year due to a number of factors,” said Faulk, the zoo spokeswoman. “According to our veterinary staff, Ya Ya has a skin mite condition, which in bears who do not have a perfect immune system, could cause the fur symptoms she displays.
“However, she does not present any additional signs of disease such as itching or severe discomfort that could be caused by staff or anything else. Otherwise, she is a very healthy bear; she just doesn’t have the fluffy fur like most other pandas.”
The change.org petition from Panda Voices had more than 46,000 digital signatures as of Wednesday morning.
