The giant panda twin cubs born to Ying Ying might have their public debut after Lunar New Year when they are six months old, according to Howard Chuk Hau-chung, head of zoological operations and conservation at Ocean Park Hong Kong.
The twins - a boy and a girl - relied on their mother's milk and special frozen panda milk sourced from various locations in their early days. But after they turned a week old, they were weaned to formula prepared by the team caring for them.
"She would appear to be very tired with no appetite and mood swings," Wu said. "Our whole husbandry team spends so much time looking for food she likes or present food in different forms she is willing to eat. Sometimes we literally just feed it into her mouth."
The park's team also thanked experts from the China Conservation and Research Center for Giant Pandas for their support.Dong Li, an expert with over 20 years' experience in caring for pregnant pandas, said Ying Ying was a "very individualistic panda and was treated like a princess" before giving birth, but her personality changed.
"She became very maternal. Whether foraging or resting, she would divert her attention to her cubs when she hears them," Dong said.Currently, the two baby pandas are under the 24-hour care of specialists and Ying Ying on a rotational basis. Ying Ying has not been given both of her babies to take care of at the same time.
The park is exploring plans to expand or modify its facilities as the twins will require separate care environment when they are two or three years old, Chuk said.
