EDINBURGH animal protection charity OneKind has criticised the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland’s latest attempt to produce a panda cub for Edinburgh Zoo through artificial insemination.
OneKind Policy Advisor Libby Anderson said it was "“desperately sad" that the society was continuing to use the technique despite not having success on three previous occasions, calling the policy "misguided" when they will never return to the wild.
It is understood the female giant panda Tian Tian was artificially inseminated earlier this week using semen from the male panda Yang Guang.
Libby Anderson added: "We have said time and time again that the zoo should leave the animals in peace rather than continually forcing unnatural procedures on them in efforts to breed a captive panda cub. After four years of unsuccessful attempts to breed, surely enough is enough."
Giant pandas are renowned as being the biggest crowd pullers in the zoological world, and the deal struck between China and the Zoo was intended to be extremely lucrative, although any cubs born at Edinburgh would have to be returned to China at age two.
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