China’s pandas in new ‘sexercise’ programme: Report

China’s notoriously sex-shy pandas are being put through a rigorous ‘sexercise’ programme in a new effort to encourage them to mate.

China’s notoriously sex-shy pandas are being put through a rigorous “sexercise” programme in a new effort to encourage them to mate, state media reported on Tuesday.

The Chengdu Panda Breeding and Research Centre in the southwestern province of Sichuan is making male pandas walk on their two legs to strengthen their pelvic and hip muscles, to better prepare them for sex, the China Daily said.

The move, which is achieved by luring male pandas up with an apple, looks remarkably like a dance routine and is aimed to boost the animal’s sexual stamina, the report said.

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Giant pandas are known to be sexually inactive, but the new measure follows several other initiatives taken to try and encourage breeding, including panda pornography.

The quirky measures aim at to ensure the survival of one of the world’s most endangered animals.

As of November last year, China had 239 giant pandas in captivity, with another 27 pandas living outside the country.

About 1,590 more are thought to be living in the wild.

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The pandas at the base in Chengdu are also put through a fitness and sensory stimulation programme. More than 30 per cent of pandas at the base can now have sex naturally, compared to just 10 per cent a decade ago, according to the report.

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