An 18-day-old golden takin, a goat-antelope, and its mother meet visitors at the Shanghai Zoo yesterday. Another was born last Friday. The species is under China's highest level of protection. [Wang Rongjiang/Shanghai Daily]

Two local zoos will host ox-themed events during the Spring Festival holiday to mark the coming Year of the Ox.

The Shanghai Zoo and the Shanghai Wildlife Park will hold the exhibitions to give visitors a better idea of oxen, buffaloes and cows.

Children visiting the Shanghai Zoo can also play with two golden takin cubs during the festival. The cubs were born this month.

"Golden takins are a breed of ox. They are the most good-looking oxen," said Pan Xiuwen, who works at the zoo.

The Shanghai Zoo will renovate the enclosures of all its animals before the 2010 World Expo, officials said yesterday.

"The animals will be more comfortable in enclosures that are more like their natural environment," said Xiong Chengpei, director of the zoo.

During the annual meeting of the Shanghai Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, a proposal was made to relocate the zoo to Nanhui District to make way for the development of the Hongqiao area.

Xiong said the zoo, which is home to 6,000 animals, will not move. "No matter how developed Hongqiao gets, it needs a piece of green land," Xiong said. "The 55-year-old zoo is a precious childhood memory for millions of Shanghai residents.

"We don't want to see the memory demolished."

(Shanghai Daily January 21, 2009)