Philippe Lopez / AFP/ Getty Images
It’s a sad day for panda-lovers everywhere: Jia Jia, the world’s oldest panda living in captivity, passed away at the age of 38.
Jia Jia was given human euthanasia after her health deteriorated over the past two weeks. She had difficulty walking and ate less than three kilograms of food per day, from her usual 10. Through the years, she has also developed high blood pressure and arthritis.
She lived in an enclosure in Ocean Park Hong Kong.
According to the theme park, “Her state became so debilitated that based on ethical reasons and in order to prevent suffering, veterinarians from the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department and Ocean Park agreed to a humane euthanasia for Jia Jia.”
Ocean Park chairman Leo Kung added, “This is a day we knew would eventually come, but it is nevertheless a sad day for everyone at the Park, especially for the Park’s keepers who took care of her over the years.”
Jia Jia, whose name means “excellence,” was born in 1978 in Sichuan province, China. She was given to Hong Kong in 1999 to commemorate Britain’s semi-autonomous handover in 1997.
Jia Jia became world’s oldest panda in captivity when she celebrated her 37th birthday in 2015.
A panda’s lifespan in the wild is an average of 18 to 20 years. In captivity, it is 30 years.
In the past, pandas were considered endangered, until conservation efforts in China have increased their population. They are now considered “vulnerable.” From an estimate of 1,864 adult giant pandas by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), there are now roughly 2,060 pandas, including cubs.
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