Visitors to a Chinese zoo were led to believe they would see ‘panda dogs’, but discovered that the animals were actually chow chows dyed black and white. The Taizhou Zoo, which launched this exhibit on May 1, charged visitors 20 yuan (£2.22) to view the new attraction. Upon arrival, however, attendees at the zoo in Jiangsu province realized the supposed ‘panda dogs’ were just locally bred chow chows, known for their dense double coats, altered in appearance to mimic pandas.
The Global Times, a state media outlet, reported that lawyers commented visitors would “inevitably feel disappointed and deceived” upon learning the truth. Despite this, a zoo employee defended the exhibit on Monday, denying any allegations of misleading advertising. “This is just a new display we offer to visitors. We are not charging extra. The wording featuring chow chow dogs is correct and exactly describes what they are, so we are not cheating our visitors,” the worker stated.
According to Jam Press, a zoo spokesperson defended their ‘panda’ exhibit, stating, “People also dye their hair. Natural dye can be used on dogs with long fur. There are no panda bears at the zoo, and we wanted to do this as a result.”
This isn’t the first instance of a Chinese zoo being accused of deceptive practices regarding its animals. In 2023, the Hangzhou Zoo was forced to refute allegations that some of its bears were actually people in costumes. This came after a video of a Malaysian sun bear, named Angela, walking on its hind legs went viral in July, leading to suspicions that it was a person in a poorly fitting bear suit.
A zoo staff member commented on WeChat, “Our zoo is government-run, so that kind of situation would not happen. The temperature in the summer is nearly 40 degrees; if you put on a fur suit, you certainly couldn’t last more than a few minutes without lying down.” Additionally, other Chinese zoos have faced accusations of disguising dogs with dyed and trimmed fur as wolves or African cats.
In 2010, a park in Zhengzhou, Henan province, purchased four chow chows and a golden retriever that had been dyed to look like a tiger from a pet market in Sichuan, as part of an effort to draw in visitors, according to what Reuters cited local media reports.