Panda Tai Shan: The Person Who Knows Tai Shan Best

Feb. 4, 2010— -- The following is a first person account by zookeeper Nicole Meese, the principal keeper of Tai Shan, the much-loved panda at the Washington National Zoo. Today, Tai Shan departed for China, where he will find a new home. Meese, who has taken care of Tai Shan for 4 ½ years, accompanied him on the flight. ABC News interviewed Nicole Meese to share her thoughts on Tai Shan.

I've been working with Tai Shan ever since he was born. I've been his trainer since he was 6 months old.

So we've spent a lot of hours together. At first I have to admit Tai Shan wasn't especially cute, when he was really little. Baby pandas are very tiny, pink, nearly hairless, their eyes and ears are closed, they look more like a rat at first.

We were just happy that he was healthy and moving around and very vocal . It took a few weeks for his markings to come in and his fur to come in and ever since then, he's been the cutest thing ever.

When he was really little, he was very squirmy. I held him for one of his first cub exams and he was wiggly the whole time. His eyes just opened up and his ears just started to open up, so he was beginning to explore his world. He was a little hard to handle at that point.

Beyond that we didn't pick him up much. We did go into the yard with him when he was a young cub. He used to follow us around, chase the bamboo and follow us everywhere when we were setting up the yards.

His favorite food is a tossup. Pears and cooked sweet potatoes. We boil the sweet potatoes here in the panda house. There will be some going along with him in-flight in case he needs a snack.

He's not a fan of carrots, and neither is his father, so it's kind of interesting, having never lived together. They have the same food likes and dislikes.

Tai Shan enjoys playing, exploring his environment, rolling down the hill, climbing up trees, running around his yard. He's been seen chasing some squirrels and birds over the years.