Goodbye, An An: Hong Kong’s beloved giant panda euthanised after health declines from old age
- Park says its vets and those from the government made the ‘difficult decision’ to perform procedure
- Visitors mourn famous animal which arrived in 1999 with female companion Jia Jia as a gift from Beijing
An An, the world’s oldest male giant panda in captivity, was put down on Thursday morning at Hong Kong’s Ocean Park.
The park said the animal, which was 35 – the equivalent of 105 human years – had refused solid food and had only drank water or liquids fortified with electrolytes in the run-up to the decision to end its life.
The park added that the panda had been mostly inactive before its death and that staff had provided veterinary care to ensure it did not suffer.
“An An is an indispensable member of our family and has grown together with the park. He has also built a strong bond of friendship with locals and tourists alike,” Ocean Park Corporation chairman Paulo Pong said.
“An An has brought us fond memories with numerous heart-warming moments. His cleverness and playfulness will be dearly missed.”
“Veterinarians from Ocean Park and the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department made the difficult decision to perform the procedure of humane euthanasia on An An after consulting the China Conservation and Research Centre for the Giant Panda,” Ocean Park explained.
