Zookeeper suspended for mistreating giant panda

A giant panda keeper was suspended from his job in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, for poking the animal with a bamboo pole to make it go back to its room.

A video clip showing the keeper poking and beating the panda at Nanjing Ziqing Lake Wildlife World was recorded on Monday by a visitor and recently went viral online.

Wildlife World apologized to the public and said the keeper will never be allowed to work with giant pandas in the park again. It also punished other staff member who was responsible for the panda, Nuan Nuan, and will strengthen the supervision and management of keepers to prevent such incidents from happening again.

Born in August 2015 in Malaysia, Nuan Nuan was sent to Wildlife World in 2019.