3-day-old giant panda cub dies at Kobe zoo

The Yomiuri Shimbun

KOBE--A giant panda cub died at Oji Zoo in Kobe on Friday, three days after it was born, the zoo said.

The cub's death is believed to have been due to either excessively strong hugging from its mother, or enfeeblement from not drinking milk.

The cub was born to mother Dan Dan and her partner Xing Xing, both 12, as the result of artificial insemination. According to the zoo in Nada Ward, a keeper monitoring the panda enclosure noticed around 12:50 p.m. that the cub's cries were weakening. It was confirmed dead an hour later.

The cub was 19 centimeters long and weighed 82 grams.