After spending twenty years at the Memphis Zoo in the United States, panda Ya Ya has returned to her home in China due to her worrying health. At the time, in 2023, she weighed just 75 kg, but today she's in enviable shape: 95 kg.
Ya Ya Panda's Health Conditions in 2023: Who Is He?
Ya Ya was born on August 3, 2000, in Beijing. In 2003, she arrived in America thanks to the famous "panda diplomacy," the cultural loan between China and the United States that usually lasts a decade but in her case was extended until 2023. Upon her arrival in April of that year, photographs circulating online showed her in alarming condition: extremely thin, with irritated skin and thinning fur—thus sparking a wave of criticism from Chinese netizens.
Name: Ya Ya (丫丫)
Gender: Female
Date of birth: August 3, 2000
Place of birth:Qinling Giant Panda Research Center (Shaanxi Province Rare Wildlife Rescue Base)
Genealogical number: 507
Marito: Le Le (乐乐)
Brothers: Jing Xiu (京秀), Jing Jing (京京), Jing Gang (京刚), Jing Hui (京惠)
Trouble at the Memphis Zoo: What Happened?
Panda Ya Ya has always struggled with chronic dermatitis. It was caused by the Demodex ailuropodae parasite, diagnosed in 2006, and since then, every year, due to hormonal fluctuations, she has lost her fur in patches. The American zoo insisted it wasn't malnutrition, but "family genetics." Her dental checkups were normal, she ate heartily, and her weight simply reflected the build inherited from her lineage. Yet those photos from 2023 revealed otherwise. After the death of her companion Le Le, Ya Ya began to slowly decline. And from there, arrangements were made for her repatriation to China. At that point, the Memphis Zoo bid her farewell with a moving ceremony, accompanying her to Shanghai with veterinarians in tow.
The miracle of Chinese cures
Having landed at the Beijing Zoo in late May 2023, Ya Ya has truly begun to recover. She's regaining her former beauty, step by step. Today, at 25 years old, she looks like this: 95 kg of pure splendor. A thick, silky coat, and you can see her there, rolling blissfully in the sun surrounded by bundles of fresh bamboo. A video uploaded to the zoo's social media channels in late January 2026 captures her in all her vitality, and fans immediately chorus: "Ya Ya is back!", they write in unison, with hearts and likes.Thanks to the Chinese protocol, a diet tailored to her condition, a habitat studied down to the smallest detail, and targeted treatments specifically for her sensitive skin, she managed to regain her 20 kilos.