Eh, close enough!

This zoo in China decided to pull a fun prank. What if we painted dogs like pandas and told everyone they were “panda dogs”? Fun, right?

According to the internet, wrong. Everyone and their mother were quick to accuse the zoo of trying to pull one over on tourists, with some lamenting how silly and stupid the visitors must be if they actually believed these animals were pandas.

The thing is, no one thought they were. “The idea to dye them as pandas came from the internet, aiming to boost the zoo’s appeal and increase visitor numbers. We’ve made it clear beforehand that they’re not real pandas, so there’s no deception,” said a zoo spokesperson.

In the end, it seemed like the stunt worked, as I now know more about a tiny zoo in eastern China than I ever did before. That waterfall is still fake though.