artis zoo

by POPSUGAR Pets

Sadly the Red Panda we saw in that adorable video passed away yesterday. If you don't recall, the abandoned baby was taking up with surrogate mommy – a tabby – after being rejected but her own mother.

It was the first time that a red panda was suckled by a cat within the European breeding program for endangered species, and the lil one was raised along with four kittens born around the same time. Turns out the cub suffocated when her windpipe was filled with milk, but was otherwise in good health. So sad, but kudos to the feline for helping out while she could.

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by POPSUGAR Pets

As if the pictures weren't enough cuteness, there's now a video of four frolicking kittens – and one red panda! – for our viewing pleasure. Looks like the closed-eye cub has no problem climbing up on the cats to find his way to the food. They're all about the same size now and, when fully grown, the panda will just be slightly larger than the domestic cat.

Since the mama kitty will nurse the cub for about three months, I've got my fingers crossed that we'll see more when this babe grows up, too!

by POPSUGAR Pets

Holy moly, I don't think I can handle any more helpful kitties – my heart is melting with the latest tale. Although it's hard to tell what's going on in these pictures, it's actually a Red Panda (BTW, my favorite wild animal in the world) being nursed by a Dutch tabby cat! The baby's mother, Gladys, rejected her two cubs just after they were born on June 30 . . . leaving zookeepers with a wee problem on their hands.

Even though the two babies started out in an incubator (sadly, one was too weak and died last Thursday), one of the zookeepers at Amsterdam's Artis Zoo had a pet that had just given birth herself . . . and this mama cat was willing to take on one more babe, the Red Panda currently about the same size as her four kittens. I can't imagine what sweet coupling we'll see next!

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