This handout photo released by the Smithsonian's National Zoo shows a panda cub named Xiao Qi Ji in Washington. (PHOTO / AP)

WASHINGTON - US-born giant panda cub Xiao Qi Ji has taken his first steps, according to the Smithsonian's National Zoo.

The "big milestone" occurred on Thanksgiving, which fell on Nov 26

The "big milestone" occurred on Thanksgiving, which fell on Nov. 26, when the male cub was three months and five days old, Laurie Thompson, the National Zoo's assistant curator of giant pandas, wrote in an update published on Friday.

READ MORE: 'Little Miracle': US public names giant panda cub Xiao Qi Ji

"That morning, he rested just outside the den while his mother Mei Xiang slept inside," Thompson observed. "After months of practice, he positioned all four feet beneath him and took a few wobbly steps toward her before toppling over."

Xiao Qi Ji was born on Aug 21 to mother Mei Xiang and father Tian Tian, who is also living in the Washington, DC zoo. 

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