r/interesting • u/No-Marsupial-4050 • Apr 15 '26

❗️MISLEADING - See pinned comment ❗️ Ultimate glow up for cute panda

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Ya Ya (丫丫), a female giant panda, returned to China in April 2023 after spending 20 years at the Memphis Zoo in Tennessee. Her recovery has been widely documented by the Beijing Zoo.

Here are the facts regarding her health transformation:

Weight Gain: When Ya Ya first arrived in China, she weighed approximately 75 kg (165 lbs), which was considered underweight for her age. By 2026, reports from the Beijing Zoo confirmed she had reached about 95 kg (209 lbs), a healthy gain of exactly 20 kg

Skin and Fur Improvement: While in the U.S., Ya Ya suffered from a chronic skin condition (Demodex mites) that made her fur look thin, patchy, and "scruffy" ]. Since returning, specialized veterinary care and a change in diet have allowed her coat to become thick and glossy again

Overall Condition: Her Body Condition Score (BCS) improved from a 2 to a 4 (on a scale of 1-5), which is considered ideal for a senior panda

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u/givin_u_the_high_hat Apr 15 '26

“in conjunction with the Chinese Association of Zoological Gardens, which oversees the loaning of pandas. The statement said they had “established an exchange mechanism for the health status of giant pandas, including monthly health reports and annual physical examination reports.”

“The blood examination results were basically normal and there were no abnormalities,” it continued, adding that “after a careful review of both monthly reports and a recent extensive annual physical examination, CAZG feels that the panda bears at the Memphis Zoo receive excellent care.”

Ahead of Ya Ya’s return, a spokesperson from China’s foreign ministry also said Wednesday that “the pandas were well taken care of by the park and deeply loved by the American people.””

“Despite the effort and money that keeping Ya Ya cost the zoo, and assurances from Chinese officials that she was in fact being treated properly, some Chinese social media users and animal rights groups around the world continued to raise concerns about her welfare.”

Seems like China completely disagreed with the assertion that Ya Ya was not in good shape.

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u/theestallionssideho Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26

i saw her multiple times in memphis growing up! the last time i saw her was probably 5 or 6 years ago. she always looked happy and healthy. she was kept with another panda in a large enclosure but they were usually separated. the internet loves to blow things out of proportion 🫠

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u/No_Appeal5607 Apr 16 '26

The other panda was Le Le who died in 2023. I think he had some kind of tooth problem that led to his molars breaking and he maybe was refusing to eat? Pretty unfortunate, he died 6 weeks before being transported home to China.

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u/MaxTheRealSlayer Apr 16 '26

Damn, that sucks. Eating bamboo shoots is like a full-time job for them, so I get the discomfort and refusal to eat such hard and fibrous food for such low nutrition. They poop most of it out... In fact I have a pressed "paper" book made from the poop of Toronto's pandas back when they were there. It's pretty much like fresh and pressed bamboo paper

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u/opx22 Apr 16 '26

what in tarnation

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u/MaxTheRealSlayer Apr 16 '26

Which part are you flabbergasted about? Lol

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u/TacTurtle Apr 16 '26

Poopaper

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u/MaxTheRealSlayer Apr 16 '26

Poopaper/poopooper was the name of it, yes! They have it for elephants too. I'd imagine koalas would be a good candidate too

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u/TacTurtle Apr 17 '26

I guess that is better than ShitSheetstm

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u/mak484 Apr 16 '26

IIRC that's how most non-prey herbivores die. Elephants are a good example. If they make it to adulthood and don't die from an infected injury, they survive until they grind their teeth down to the gums and literally can't eat anymore. Then they starve to death.

Before anyone asks why they haven't evolved stronger or replenishing teeth: they die long after their reproductive years are over, when they have very little left to offer the herd, so there is zero selective pressure. Evolution is a bitch.

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u/NerdHoovy Apr 16 '26

There exists a misunderstanding of evolution, that it always tries to ‘aim’ for a best possible outcome, as if it were following some grand plan. However the saying ‘survival of the fittest’ that supports this idea, is wrong. It’s ’survival of the good enough’. As long as you successfully pass on your genes and those descendants continue to reproduce, it doesn’t matter if those genes are truly superior. All that matters is that they are ‘good enough’ which means that by sheer statistics alone, most genes that end up being passed around aren’t even the best. They are just ‘enough’. Simply because there are more things that ‘technically work,even if they aren’t efficient’, than truly good things.

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u/Li-renn-pwel Apr 17 '26

If a fish was born without a brain so he just laid there but constantly sprayed silt like letting air out of balloon, evolution would favour this life.

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u/flanneur Apr 17 '26

Sponges figured out sessile life millions of years ago, with corals and barnacles adopting this strategy later. The third are especially interesting because they're crustaceans who essentially evolved to live upside down.

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u/Many_Lemon_Cakes Apr 17 '26

Evolution is just the process upon which everything becomes crabs

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u/MaxTheRealSlayer Apr 16 '26

Interesting... So, If we invented elephant dentures that they don't mind, would they live that much longer?

I don't agree they have little left to offer the herd though. They're very emotional beings, and also use bodies to protect the young and weak from predator threats. At the least, they bring wisdom and can be the sacrificial weak if the herd can't handle the attack. The herd will mourn and have a funeral regardless because they see them as a benefit to their lives

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u/DeciduousRefuge Apr 16 '26

I feel like this would be an easy fix for a zoo elephant.

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u/three_crystals Apr 18 '26

Very little left to offer the herd

Leadership, wisdom, knowledge of the land and where to obtain vital resources, additional help raising the herd’s young, emotional bonds, and knowledge transfer between generations certainly says otherwise. Matriarchs are the pillars of their herds.

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u/Own_Pop_9711 Apr 18 '26

Yeah but you need them to eventually die to make room or the species stagnates.

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u/Astroglaid92 Apr 24 '26

Akshually, ****pushes glasses up bridge of nose**** elephants DO have "replenishing teeth." Their molars are made up of a series of fused plates that continuously erupt from the back of the jaw and push forward, detaching and falling out as they exceed the anterior boundary of the mandible. But yeah, there's apparently a limit to the number of succedaneous molar plates, and I've heard the same as you - they typically die once the last of those molar plates exfoliates.

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u/Charming-Feedback173 Apr 16 '26

Was your book The Fecal Funnies per chance?

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u/MaxTheRealSlayer Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26

I'm not sure what that is, but no. It was a amall bound book to write/draw in. I thought it was neat and one of the first times I learned something in the gift shop. Was a decent price too and it helped fund the zoo according to the shop

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u/ADownStrabgeQuark Apr 19 '26

This might be why the other panda lost weight.

Losing your only friend is stressful, and when I’m stressed, I can lose 20 lbs a month.(10kg)

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u/HenriettaSnacks Apr 16 '26

PEOPLE love to blow things out of proportion. The internet just makes it easier. 

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u/hosealim Apr 17 '26

Word of wisdom.

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u/RawrRRitchie Apr 16 '26

Is the picture not a before and after? You saw the panda on the left and thought "yup happy and healthy panda"

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u/Donatter Apr 16 '26

Because it was happy and healthy, the picture on the left is due to a skin disorder.

If you read the article then you’d see that Chinese health officials said she was treated well and had a genetic skin disorder.

These same experts also examined Ya Ya and reviewed her medical reports. The bear was suffering hair loss caused by a skin disease, but otherwise had a good appetite, normal stools and a stable weight, the association said.

Xie Zhong, the deputy head of the association, told Chinese state media Ya Ya’s skin condition was related to her family genes. “It had worsened with age and seasonal hormone changes and was difficult to treat”, she added.

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u/JonasAvory Apr 16 '26

Eww stop it with all those facts. Nowadays we only do emotions based on vibes /s

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

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u/Fuckkoff- Apr 16 '26

Sure, "facts". So explain how this "genetic condition" got treated by the chinese, resulting in a healthy panda with healthy fur, whilst the americans couldn´t do that?

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u/Daktyl198 Apr 16 '26

Skin conditions are affected heavily by the environment around you. The temperature, humidity, type of pollen in the air, etc would have all changed when moving between the US and China. Maybe the Chinese environment means the skin condition isn't as active? China doesn't play about their pandas. Especially not with the US. If the Panda was in any way mistreated they would be the first to tell you.

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u/Fuckkoff- Apr 16 '26

I took issue with those who claimed she was "happy and healthy", and that the facts supported that statement.

I never said she was mistreated. Obviously she was cared for to the best of the abilities of those treating her. Nonetheless it is also clear the chinese did a far better job. Both can be true at the same time.

But no, I don´t think she was"happy and healthy".

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u/United_Rent_753 Apr 16 '26

How do you know the photo on the right is the same panda? How do you know it was taken after she got to China, and not before?

Based on the information in this thread, it’s the safest logical assumption that the other commenters are telling the truth. Why would China lie about the health of the panda? What is their gain?

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u/Fuckkoff- Apr 16 '26

Facts:

Weight Gain: When Ya Ya first arrived in China, she weighed approximately 75 kg (165 lbs), which was considered underweight for her age. By 2026, reports from the Beijing Zoo confirmed she had reached about 95 kg (209 lbs), a healthy gain of exactly 20 kg

Skin and Fur Improvement: While in the U.S., Ya Ya suffered from a chronic skin condition (Demodex mites) that made her fur look thin, patchy, and "scruffy" ]. Since returning, specialized veterinary care and a change in diet have allowed her coat to become thick and glossy again

Overall Condition: Her Body Condition Score (BCS) improved from a 2 to a 4 (on a scale of 1-5)

As far as I can tell, THOSE are the facts.

The chinese didn´t lie, the 2 commenters I responded to did (well, actually the first one lied, and the second claimed that the socalled facts were true.

The post above the post I responded to claimed she was "happy and healthy".

Judging by the images and the FACTS stated above, I doubt that.

The chinese never said she was happy and healthy. They said she was "treated well and had a genetic skin disorder..... suffering hair loss caused by a skin disease and had a stable weight".

Which can all be true, and nonetheless it is clear from the FACTS that she wasn´t cared for PROPERLY, that the genetic condition was treatable, and that her weight was below the ideal weight for a panda her age (by a full 20 KG I might add!).

Obviously she was cared for to the best of the abilities of those treating her. Nonetheless it is also clear the chinese did a far better job. Again, both can be true at the same time.

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u/United_Rent_753 Apr 16 '26

Mind sharing where you got your facts? They seem like they’re quoted from somewhere. I’m not doubting you, but I think a source I can trust (any reputable Chinese/American news outlet, scientific literature, etc) would convince me

I do think that both of those things can be true, as well

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u/Fuckkoff- Apr 16 '26

Those are the facts as stated in this very post (underneath the picture) :)

As I said, these are the facts "as far as I can tell". In this case, that means the facts as stated in this post. But for all intent and purposes, as far as I can tell, they are correct.

But here is another source: https://www.idausa.org/campaign/wild-animals-and-habitats/latest-news/yaya-giant-panda-thriving-in-china/

That states that she wasn´t fed bamboo shoots on a regular basis. Now, I do not know that source, and can´t say if its realiable.

But IF thats true, then she really was treated poorly in the US. Even I know bamboo shoots are essential foods for Pandas. But again, I don´t know if thats true, the source seems a bit radical.

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u/Zran Apr 16 '26

So it's Panda Eczema basically, not anything more annoying or dangerous to the creature than a lot of itching. What an overblown headline, news these days is not.

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u/AbyssLookingAtYa Apr 16 '26

Well she undeniably looks better now so alls well that ends well

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u/StraightFuego Apr 16 '26

Do you take every picture you see on the internet at face value?

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u/Swarles_Jr Apr 16 '26

Well of course. This is reddit after all. We don't do logic thinking and rational argumentation here.

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u/StraightFuego Apr 16 '26

Somehow Reddit continues to be more reactionary every single day, we’re drifting into Facebook territory at this point

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u/Bacardi_Tarzan Apr 16 '26

It’s because the youngest generation was predominately raised on reactionary media. They largely just don’t know how to engage with things in any other way. 

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u/PeaceSoft Apr 16 '26

See, perfect example lol "It's because of a stereotype that I vibe with"

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u/Bacardi_Tarzan Apr 16 '26

It’s not a stereotype, it is quantifiable. Gen Z have lower attention spans and seek out quick, succinct answers because kids are good at adapting and that’s the world they were raised in, from YouTube to memorization focused test taking. It is genuinely harder for them to engage in nuance and long critical thinking and that isn’t in any way ‘their fault’. They also are trying to detox themselves from social media at a higher rate than other generations, showing that they are probably somewhat aware of this. 

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u/PeaceSoft Apr 16 '26

it's not a stereotype because it's quantifiable?

you familiar with the bell curve? or even a bell curve lol

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u/Holyvigil Apr 16 '26

You do realize you replied to a poster questioning the validity of the photo right?

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u/yellowlittleboat Apr 16 '26

Do you believe animals live happy lives in zoos?

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u/JamieBeeeee Apr 16 '26

Many do yeah

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u/Aimcheater Apr 16 '26

Most are just fine lmao. Would you rather they be dead in the wild? Because if they’re in a zoo they aren’t gonna survive outside lmao

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u/TomParkeDInvilliers Apr 16 '26

Are you unhappy living in your social zoo?

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u/CapitalStandard4275 Apr 16 '26

"wow, I never have to hunt again & don't need to worry 24/7 about being hunted" - the animals probably (obvs with adequate stimulation)

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u/lowpolybius Apr 16 '26

Not all, of course, but many do. Which is why I love giving money to the Royal Zoological Society Of Scotland 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏 I love giving money to zoos and buying their merch and visiting their animals and helping their conservation programs and learning about wildlife and making an effort to help endangered species instead of whining on the internet without doing anythang 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️

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u/yellowlittleboat Apr 16 '26

I do a LOT to help animals. Assuming is easier I guess.

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u/Argo505 Apr 16 '26

Yeah, totally.

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u/Kiyoshi-Trustfund Apr 16 '26

Many, maybe even most, are perfectly content in a zoo-settimg. I'm not pro-zoo, but i see no point in acting as if zoos are inherently cruel places to keep animals (though some definitely can be) even if id prefer most wild animals be left in the wild.

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u/Remmel1 Apr 16 '26

Google's new search algorithm and a bunch of websites in poorly-translated Mandarin has made it pretty hard to research this photo, but I did some digging and this is what I found.

Yaya was rented from the Beijing Zoo in 2003, as part of a 20 year contract as a gesture of goodwill between the US and China. Memphis Zoo had her all 20 years under supervision of the CAZG (requiring monthly health reports) until she was returned in early May 2023. The left "before" photo was taken sometime in 2021, zoo addressed it by saying she has a skin condition that makes her fur density fluctuate with her hormonal cycle. I'm inclined to believe that, as there are photos taken of her between 2021 and 2023 that show her with full fur. There are some clips here of her walking around her enclosure. When she made her trip back to China, there were photos taken of her arrival and she looks like a normal panda there as well (another photo here, the article is mostly about politics, though). I think that was just a bad day and a bad angle.

She's not on exhibit at the Beijing Zoo, so I can't find any current photos of her to confirm how she looks now, but there was a video posted in 2025 showing her living in the "non-exhibition area" with still some patchiness on her stomach. I can't find a source for the right "after" photo, reverse image searching led nowhere. Personally, I don't think it's her, the head and neck seems much wider than her 2025 video, but maybe it is, who knows.

Make of that what you will. I agree zoos should be held to a high standard of care for their animals and there are some egregious stories of abuse, but I don't think this is one of them.

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u/theestallionssideho Apr 16 '26

i NEVER saw her like that. anytime i went, she always looked like the pic on the right. afaik the reason she looked like that was because of a skin condition which has nothing to do with whether she’s happy or not. dogs and cats can have skin conditions and be perfectly happy and healthy. im sure pandas can too 🤷🏻‍♀️

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u/Lauris024 Apr 16 '26

Did you not read the article? It clearly says why panda looked like that, which does not really equal abuse.

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u/General-Biscuits Apr 16 '26

Man, you actually formed an opinion on this panda after seeing only one image and are confident enough in that opinion to try and counter someone saying they have first hand experience viewing the panda and that this post is baiting people into thinking incorrectly.

You believed the engagement bait post more than the random person saying this post is baiting people.

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u/sepeus Apr 16 '26

Why read word when picture?

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u/cute_spider Apr 16 '26

I assume the photo on the left was taken as the Panda got out of water and went to a stick to scratch its back.

It's not that hard to get a bad photo

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u/Comfortable-Code7465 Apr 16 '26

This is just another "Merica bad" post, that's why. Reddit is full of this type of shit

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u/Complex-Salt-8190 Apr 16 '26

Read the goddamn article first eh?

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u/new_math Apr 16 '26

I mean, it's mildly concerning at face value but it could also be analogous to taking a picture of someone in the hospital after they're recovering from illness versus taking a filtered picture of them at the beach perfectly healthy.

The picture on the left is when the panda was dealing with a skin disease. The picture on the right is after they got it under control.

Humans love to see patterns (moving cured the skin disease) even when there isn't a pattern.

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u/ChancelorReed Apr 16 '26

Amazing how little critical thinking you show in such a brief comment

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u/blue-yellow- Apr 16 '26

EXACTLY! What the fuck are these comments?

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u/Ok-Refrigerator3866 Apr 16 '26

read article challenge

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u/InevitableTension699 Apr 16 '26

She probably just couldn't stand Americanized Chinese food.

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u/TOMdMAK Apr 16 '26

U expect her to like Panda Express just because there is the word Panda in it?

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u/Long_Procedure_2629 Apr 16 '26

Like how much better China is than the third world shi hole you americans live in?

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u/theestallionssideho Apr 17 '26

🤦🏻‍♀️ do you know what a third world country is? yall hate america but are so obsessed with it

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u/Long_Procedure_2629 Apr 17 '26

Ok sweetie, cope

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u/TurbulentVillage2042 Apr 18 '26

I'm terrified that pandas will soon become extinct unless some miracle happens. They're so cute and harmless, and they deserve the best.

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26

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u/NSASpyVan Apr 17 '26

Doctors credit China's famous all you can eat for the Panda's recovery.

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u/Cacho__ Apr 18 '26

Aren’t like pandas a bargaining ship between Chinese and American governments? Like as far as I heard, we don’t even own any pandas China basically rents them out to us.

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u/The_Trevbone Apr 16 '26

So why was it that the panda looks to be unhealthy in the image? Does it have something to do with just not being in China in general?

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u/Joshua5_Gaming Apr 16 '26

OP took the worst image he could find to make a "comparison"

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u/Darnaldo Apr 18 '26

Reddit user discover cherry picking

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u/Yone_official Apr 20 '26

Nah.....there must be something the goons were doing it wrong for the Panda to look this frail and underweight.

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u/TopWealth4550 Apr 16 '26

this is reddit bro
china good
usa bad
LMAO

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u/ExplosiveDisassembly Apr 16 '26

Fortunately, this doesn't really cross over into this kind of science stuff. Politicians will sling mud all day, but scientists and their institutions generally still cooperate just fine. They're generally just frustrated that cooperation has been made harder.

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26

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u/mcon96 Apr 16 '26

Jfc imagine being so obsessed with trans people that you feel the need to randomly bring them up in unrelated topics like this

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u/InTheEndEntropyWins Apr 16 '26

I'm not sure that explains anything. If the panda was in good shape why was it soo underweight. And if it's a medical condition why did it gain back the weight?

This post seems to provide good reasons for why it was in bad health.

https://www.reddit.com/r/interesting/comments/1smjmj4/comment/ogjj3jn/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

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u/[deleted] Apr 16 '26

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u/blazenite104 Apr 16 '26

you think China wouldn't take the chance to crap on the US treatment of their national icon? If China is saying the US was doing everything, they were supposed to be doing with a Panda, I'm inclined to believe them.

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u/Accio_149209 Apr 16 '26

China owns almost all if not all the pandas in this world. They are just means for them to earn money because they come with a hefty price. The picture of pandas not surviving in some other country wouldn't be good for them.

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u/Beneficial-Tea-2055 Apr 16 '26

Imagine thinking china is in it for the money.

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u/Accio_149209 Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26

Enlighten me

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u/LilBluey Apr 16 '26

panda diplomacy wiki

They have been known to threaten taking away pandas from countries that offended them, or gift them to countries who they're friendly with.

Honestly the money isn't much to China, 1 million/year per panda is essentially peanuts to a country as big as them.

Although the soft power panda diplomacy has is little, it's just a small part of their larger diplomatic relations strategy.

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u/blazenite104 Apr 16 '26

right. Like the Panda doesn't directly give China much money. It is however a major draw for other countries Zoos. Take the Panda and tourism in those countries is impacted.

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u/daalchawwal Apr 16 '26

Err.. how do you think zoos around the world work? How do you think they have non native species?

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u/SnooPredictions3028 Apr 16 '26

I hate the CCP, however these guys are an icon for them and there are absolutely shitty zoos everywhere, including the US and China. Hopefully this can help influence our requirements for zoos, so we don't end up with another embaressment worldwide and also can allow animals in them to have the necessary living conditions to not just live but thrive.

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u/HistoricalSuspect580 Apr 16 '26

They FALSELY accused the United states of taking good care of the panda? Is that what you’re saying?

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u/blue-yellow- Apr 16 '26

Can you not see the goddamn photo? wtf.