Imagine seeing a panda in your yard every day. That’ll be super exciting! Who would not wish to have one, right? So where can you buy one? Surely, the next thing you want to know is how much do giant pandas cost, right?
Here’s a short answer, you can’t buy a real-life panda as a pet. On the other hand, you can actually rent one.
Most zoos outside China take giant pandas on loan and it costs them around $1-2 million every year to loan a panda pair. However, this is just the cost of taking a panda pair on loan.
Besides the charges of taking pandas on loans, you have to be aware of the cost of feeding them. According to CNN Money, the cost of feeding a panda pair is somewhere around $100k per year. Moreover, if a loaned panda gives birth to cubs after a period of 12 months, a conservation fee of $400k has to be paid to China.
But how about baby pandas? Do they cost as much as the giant pandas?
Let’s discuss it in this article.
How Much Does a Baby Panda Cost?
Have you seen a baby panda before? You wouldn’t believe your eyes to see one of the loveliest baby animals in the world. However, baby pandas are not for sale.
If the rented panda pair managed to mate properly and created offspring, the baby panda will cost an additional $400,000 to $600,000 (for the baby tax) to the annual lease of $1 million for each panda.
Moreover, do you know what happens when a panda cub is born? Surprisingly, these adorable looking animals have lovely behavior too.
A panda cub is born with a tiny body approximately 1/900th the size of its mother. After the mother panda gave birth, it will cradle its tiny cub in a paw and will never leave the maternity den for several days, not even to drink.
That’s how protective and caring a mother panda is to its cub. Indeed, that is an act of love and sacrifice.
Can You Own a Panda?
Unfortunately, it’s no. You cannot own these lovely creatures, but you can rent them.
The Chinese government owns all the pandas. Besides, they are the most expensive animals in the world and they require strict and high maintenance for them to live well.
The panda price in China that zoos are paying (rental fee) costs as much as $1 million a year. You can’t own a panda because they are not pets.
Furthermore, do you know how much does it cost to feed a panda?
Panda eats a massive amount of bamboo. The estimated food intake of a panda every year cost as much as $50,000.
So, if a zoo will rent a pair of pandas, it will cost them another $100,000 for feeding, which is apart from the annual rental fee of each panda. Isn’t that incredible?
Can You Own a Panda in the US?
You can’t own a panda, no matter where you live. As mentioned earlier, they are not for sale. They are only available for lease.
How Much Does a Giant Panda Cost to Adopt?
The approximate annual cost of adopting a panda is more or less around $10,000 a year.
Pandas are open for symbolic adoption. It means the pandas have to stay in China for proper care as well as their primary needs.
Furthermore, this kind of adoption is more similar to support for a cause or donation drive that mainly concerns about the welfare of the pandas.
This symbolic panda adoption is run by Pandas International. They established different levels of panda adoption. And recently, they announced special holiday adoptions offers that will be available until December 31, 2020. These are as follows:
Panda Pals
Adopters choose between Qui Zai (a brown and white panda) or Hua Mei (a black and white panda).
Price: It cost $25 only.
What’s included?
- 5×7 photo of the chosen panda
- The written story of the panda
- Symbolic adoption certificate
Caring for Cubs
Adopters choose between Qui Zai (a brown and white panda) or Hua Mei (a black and white panda).
Price: It cost $50 only.
What’s included?
- 5×7 photo of the chosen panda
- The written story of a panda
- Small keychain panda plush
- Bookmark
- Symbolic adoption certificate
Bronze Adoption
Adopters choose between Qui Zai (a brown and white panda) or Hua Mei (a black and white panda).
Price: It cost $100 only.
What’s included?
- 5×7 photo of the chosen panda
- The written story of the panda
- Small panda plush
- Bookmark
- “Save the Pandas” wrist band
- Panda pin
- Panda bank
- Personalized symbolic-adoption certificate
Silver Adoption
Adopters choose between Qui Zai (a brown and white panda) or Hua Mei (a black and white panda).
Price: It cost $250 only.
What’s included?
- Adoption portfolio with a framed 8×10 photo of the chosen panda
- The written story of the panda
- Medium panda plush
- Bookmark
- “Save the Pandas” wrist band
- Panda pin
- Panda bank
- Chosen tee-shirt from the website
- Personalized symbolic adoption certificate
Gold Adoption
Adopters can choose between Qui Zai (a brown and white panda) or Hua Mei (a black and white panda).
Price: It cost $500 only.
What’s included?
- Adoption portfolio with a framed 11×14 photo of the chosen panda
- The written story of the panda
- Large panda plush
- Bookmark
- “Save the Pandas” wrist band
- Panda pin
- Panda bank
- Chosen tee shirt from the website
- Heavy reusable 100% cotton tote
- Personalized symbolic adoption certificate
Platinum Adoption
Adopters can choose among Qui Zai (a brown and white panda), Hua Mei (a black and white panda) or any pandas open for symbolic adoption.
Price: It cost $1000 only.
What’s included?
- Semi-annual updates on the chosen panda for 12 months
- Beautiful 11×14 metal print photo of the panda
- Bookmark
- Temporary panda tattoo
- “Save the Pandas” wrist band
- Panda pin
- Panda bank
- Chosen tee shirt from the website
- Heavy reusable 100% cotton tote
- Personalized symbolic adoption certificate.
Also, additional benefits will be given to adopters (at this level only) such as free admission to Panda Centers by CCRCGP or SWARC (10 total visits for 12 months) and other related to it.
Lifetime Adoption
Price: It cost $150,000 only.
Pandas are truly adored by many. The affection towards these animals is not only found in the real world.
They are often included in several games. One of the most famous adopting games is Adopt Me, which is played in the game called Roblox.
In the real world, adopting a panda will cost you a decent amount of money considering it is just a symbolic adoption.
In Roblox, how much does a panda cost in adopt me? The answer is 249 Robux or equivalent to $0.87. It is pretty affordable to adopt one in the gaming world, which is the total opposite in the real world; considering pandas are the most exclusive animals in the world.
How Much Does a Panda Cost in India?
You cannot buy or adopt a panda in India. Also, it’s impossible to find pandas in zoos in India. Even if they do want to have a panda, we guess the amount will be the same as $1 million per year.
In addition, it’s important to know that pandas cannot survive the hot climate of India, except for North-Eastern regions like Sikkim and the Himalayan regions having low temperatures.
How Much Does a Panda Cost on the Black Market?
Buying a panda on the black market can cost you anywhere between $2000-8000 approximately. Although selling pandas is illegal, some hunters and poachers sell pandas on the black market for the money. However, there is strict punishment for illegally selling a panda.
According to China Justice Observer, a person who illegally sells, buys, kills or transports a panda goes into jail for 10 years. Moreover, that person also has to pay a heavy fine as a punishment.
How Much Money Do Pandas Make?
Yearly, pandas can make up to billions of dollars all over the world. In some zoos, their income has been doubled or increased as much as 50% of its total earnings.
Pandanomics is a term referring to the huge potential of pandas to greatly increase the annual earnings of a zoo, which can help in the conservation of their lives and other endangered animals.
Nevertheless, it seems like the pandas have their campaign for themselves and for other animals that need conservation. They are truly more than just their adorable appearance.
Does China Own All Pandas?
Technically speaking, it is yes. China owns all the pandas (the typical giant pandas) in the world. However, there are species of pandas that do not belong to China alone. They are called red pandas.
Moreover, these cute adorable animals live in the Eastern Himalayas and can be found in the forest of China, Bhutan, Nepal, India, and the Northern Mountains of Myanmar.
Their color is far from the usual idea that you have when you hear the word panda. They have a color that resembles cinnamon and of course the white fur that makes them more charming.
How Much Does a Red Panda Cost?
Red pandas are not for sale. They are also open for symbolic adoptions just like the pandas, which starts at the value of $50.
As an addition as to why these animals are not for sale, they are considered to be endangered considering the remaining number of their total population in the world.
How to Rent a Panda?
You alone cannot rent a panda, but institutions like zoos and other animal captivities can. This is due to their abilities to provide for the needs and secure the safety of a panda.
If you work in an institution or own one, here are 6 steps on how to rent a panda.
Step 1: Organize an agreement.
You can make a contract of agreement with China in renting pandas. This agreement includes the year of stay of the panda, payment method, and all the other considerations and consequences.
Step 2: Pass the monitoring.
There are monitorings that you should pass. These include the proper facilities where the panda will stay, the sufficient food supply, and the experts who will take care of the pandas.
Step 3: Pay the rental fee.
If you passed the monitoring, you can pay for the panda lease. The mode of payment will depend on the contract and agreement.
Step 4: Prepare the travel permit.
Upon transferring the panda from China to the target place, the Chinese government will check the documents for the transfer. Without proper documents, the panda can’t leave the country.
Step 5: Present the legal documents.
Upon arrival at the destination, there will be checking of the legalities before the country will allow it. If there are irregularities with the documents the government will not allow it.
Step 6: Place the panda in captivity.
After all the processes, you can finally put the panda in captivity. This way the panda can adjust to its new environment. Once everything is okay, the panda will be open for public viewing.
Conclusion
In this article, you learned that pandas are more than just their charming appearance; They are the symbol of conservation.
You also learned that it is not possible to have a panda as a pet. No matter how much money you have, you cannot simply buy them because they are not for sale.
Although, qualified institutions that can provide for their needs and can assure their safety can rent them.
You may not possibly own one, but you can get in touch with them through symbolic adoption. In this way, you’re not only adopting pandas but also helping other animals who are in need of care.
Did you find the answers to your questions? Comment down below your thoughts about this article.
Below is a Pinterest friendly-photo… so you can pin it to your “Panda” Board!
