They may look like pandas — but you can never be too paw-sitive.
A zoo in China is clearing the air about a viral attraction that’s been making the rounds on social media: a pair of Chow Chow dogs painted to look like pandas.
According to CNN, the Shanwei Zoo in China’s southern Guangdong province caught the attention of social media users — specifically on Douyin, China’s version of TikTok — on Monday, Sept. 15, when a video showing the pups went viral and was shared over 1.4 million times.
In the clip, which multiple outlets have posted on TikTok, the pups wander around a zoo enclosure and pant with their tongues out while resting on a rock.
The video also shows the dogs standing next to a sign that reads “painted dogs,” according to CNN, citing additional social media posts from users in China. “We are called Panda Dogs, a pet dog that looks like a panda, dyed and dressed up by Chow Chow,” the sign read, per CNN. “We are gentle, smart, friendly, cute and adorable!”
News.com.au reports that after the clip picked up steam, the Shanwei Zoo in China’s Guangdong province confirmed that its “pandas” were just Chow Chows painted black and white to resemble pandas.
Y Galindo/Zooilogical Society of San Diego via Getty
Huang, the location’s manager, added that while the painted pups may not be real pandas, they were still a top attraction at the zoo, CNN reported, citing the state-affiliated Sichuan Observation. “You can see by our name we are ‘Strange Animals and Cute Pets Paradise,'” she said. “These are Chow Chow dogs being painted (as pandas), as this is part of our specialties.”
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This isn’t the first time a zoo has dolled up a few dogs to look like a different species.
In May, the Taizhou Zoo in China’s Jiangsu Province also transformed Chow Chows into its own “panda dogs.” At the time, a spokesperson for the zoo confirmed to Newsflare that the zoo purchased the pups after being denied the ability to house giant pandas. Despite the true identity of the panda dogs being known, the canines were still a popular draw for the location.
Per the American Kennel Club, Chow Chows are the “all-purpose dog of ancient China,” known for their fluffy, compact, and muscular bodies and known to have “rough or smooth coats of red, black, blue, cinnamon, or cream.”
While critics called out the zoo’s decision to “promote painting domestic animals with colors to represent wild animals,” per TODAY, a zoo official told Qilu Evening News, “Normal people dye their hair. Dogs can dye their hair, too.”
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