The San Diego Zoo's panda cub, which has marked a milestone by cutting his first two teeth the lower canines near the front of his mouth, is seen in this handout photograph taken and released November 12, 2009. The discovery came during a weekly veterinary exam on Thursday. The male cub, which turned 99-days-old on Thursday, weighed 12.5 pounds and was two-feet-long from head to tail. SAN DIEGO – The San Diego Zoo's panda cub showed some teeth and some spunk Thursday during his weekly exam. He pushed up on his legs and moved across the exam table, making it harder for veterinarians to measure him, zoo officials said.
“He's definitely starting to show his personality; in fact, at one point he even barked at us,” said Beth Bicknese, a senior zoo veterinarian. “He's getting more strong and wiggly, and it does make getting precise measurements on his body a little more challenging.”
The cub, who was 99 days old Thursday, weighs 12.5 pounds and is 2 feet long. His tail, which has a black spot at the tip, is 3.5 inches long.
The cub cut his first two teeth – lower front canines. More teeth are expected soon.
“Now it's going to be a race to see if his incisors in the front come out next or if it's going to be his molars in the back, because they're both really close to popping out,” Bicknese said in a statement.
Following Chinese tradition, cubs are not named until they are at least 100 days old.
The cub's name will be announced at 11 a.m. Tuesday at the zoo.
The zoo's giant pandas are on loan from the People's Republic of China
source: signonsandiego.com, credit photo: Reuters
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