We're not sure about you, Twitchy readers, but we could use a laugh. Not a snarky, sarcastic laugh at the left (we enjoy those every day), but just an innocent, fun laugh.
Well ... mostly innocent anyway.
For that, we turn to the Taizhou Zoo in China's Jiangsu Province. See, the zoo management had a problem. Two problems, to be more precise. The first problem is that people love giant pandas. And what's not to love? They play, they cavort, they entertain the crowds. The only thing pandas don't do, not nearly often enough, is mate. It's why pandas have long been on the endangered species list, though they've recently been upgraded from endangered to vulnerable, thanks to efforts by China and the United States. They simply don't produce nearly enough offspring (they're also so lovably clumsy that many people wonder how they ever survived in the wild at all).
This led to the Taizhou Zoo's second problem: they didn't have any giant pandas they could show off to zoo visitors.
For a lesser zoo, this would have meant defeat. For the Taizhou Zoo, it simply meant they needed to apply a little ingenuity ... and a little hair dye.
A couple of Chow Chow dogs and some Clairol and BOOM: panda exhibit.
Zoogoers outraged to discover ‘panda’ exhibit was actually dogs dyed black and white https://t.co/3eD75K3JWo pic.twitter.com/0HWKMOZwx2
— New York Post (@nypost) May 6, 2024
The reason we said mostly innocent at the top is that some people were outraged that the zoo would do this to a couple of dogs. However, zoo officials assured critics that the hair dye was perfectly safe for this long-haired dog breed, no different than people dying their hair. From The New York Post:
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When asked why they had the canines engage in panda cosplay, a rep explained, “There are no panda bears at the zoo and we wanted to do this as a result.”
Many visitors accused the sanctuary of animal cruelty; however, zoo officials insist that the dogfishing scheme isn’t harmful to the animals.
“People also dye their hair,” rationalized the spokesperson. “Natural dye can be used on dogs if they have long fur.”
Many social media users were on board with these canines in panda’s clothing with one fan writing, “They are very small to run that fast! I think they’re lovely.”
“I think they’re cute,” said another.
We obtained official feedback from ladies on Twitter upon seeing the 'panda dogs.' Ninety percent had the following reaction:
'SQUUUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.'
This is amazing. I am crying☠️ https://t.co/v5hsALQKku
— No Soup 4 Knowles (@nosoup4knowles) May 7, 2024
That's hilarious.
— The_Outsider🇺🇸 (@Hattricia) May 7, 2024
But they are soo cute!!
See what we mean?
But seriously, most on Twitter seemed to take the zoo's prank in good spirits.
Honestly I woulda laughed my ass off if I was at the zoo and saw this....can't knock the hustle
— Zerp Hands (@XRP_Theef) May 6, 2024
The zoo gets almost full marks for originality here. They still don't beat the Yuanjiashan Zoo in Xichang Province that, in 2021, put a Golden Retriever into an enclosure and tried to tell visitors it was an African lion. No, we are not making that up. Check it out.
And, of course, there was the Chinese zoo that once dressed a man up in a bear suit:
At a zoo in China, there is a man wearing a bear suit. pic.twitter.com/v9TL1uzS4M
— Be Amazed! (@IndianSwede) May 6, 2024
But neither of those scams was quite as adorable as the panda dogs.
— Parrot Capital 🦜 (@ParrotCapital) May 7, 2024
We don't know what you're talking about ma'am. Those are two perfectly legitimate pandas.
The manger of the zoo when asked to make refunds: pic.twitter.com/fKoJWshttr
— Etim Abasiama (@Stunnermilli07) May 6, 2024
See? The manager said so.
In case you were wondering if there was a Simpsons joke for this, rest assured, there was.
https://t.co/okaBpT2giH pic.twitter.com/g3DFvtK8cw
— Scarlet Begonias (@vonnegutguru) May 6, 2024
Dollar General pandas 🐼 https://t.co/NAlIlR4Bqa
— Stelvis💥🇺🇸💥 (@Stelvis11) May 6, 2024
Well, it IS China after all, so we're going to double check before we order those two pandas we saw on Wish.
You want a panda? I’ll get you a panda. You don’t want to know how. https://t.co/RYeShWu5FC
— Bill Zeiser (@BillZeiser) May 7, 2024
GP And now I am having an identity crisis. WHO AM I, REALLY?!?@Darth_Mommie https://t.co/hS5G94GWHe
— The Gormogons (@Gormogons) May 6, 2024
Are any of us real? Is reality even real?
Fueling the fake panda conspiracy… https://t.co/B2T9fWmcJz pic.twitter.com/wqm7OouMtW
— Eclectic Mystic (@smith_shel91651) May 6, 2024
IT'S ALL A PSYOP.
True definition of "GOT'EM!".. https://t.co/d90P5mabIr pic.twitter.com/RkKS20rrB3
— SHOKAL (@SHOKAL7) May 6, 2024
How did the @TheBabylonBee
— Extremely Careless 🍌 (@Shanghaibeast) May 6, 2024
miss this? https://t.co/80awjskBXM
A rare oversight from The Bee.
WHAT DID YOU DO WITH THE PANDAS, @MattWalshBlog?! 😂 https://t.co/Nboo7gDgHi
— Terrible Quality Memes (@BadQualityMemes) May 6, 2024
The only way we may be able to save pit bulls from the wrath of Matt Walsh will be to put them all in clever panda disguises.
https://t.co/uvSG4WAueg pic.twitter.com/Bg6J07NXtZ
— vivian sherine green (@viviangreen45) May 6, 2024
This is the ideal dog body. You may not like it, but this is what peak performance looks like. https://t.co/pgnWX8RYm1
— Richard Morrison (@RichardMorrison) May 7, 2024
HA.
Mom: "We have pandas at home."
— Garrick I - Rex Britannia - Imperator Americae (@Boydesian) May 7, 2024
The pandas at home: https://t.co/PtnzHzWpQG
Has @OwenBenjamin seen this?! LMFAO https://t.co/ytIaLXIC0v
— Jill (@JillColtonFree) May 7, 2024
For those who don't know, Owen Benjamin has many videos on social media claiming that pandas are not real.
https://t.co/hvmiu5gOdX pic.twitter.com/G8viiLkOJV
— Eran Fabian (@EranFabian) May 6, 2024
We're just hoping that the Taizhou Zoo has some Bengal tigers too. Even if they turn out to be tabby cats.
When @KristiNoem finds out: https://t.co/IGrzAspf1H pic.twitter.com/ujo2VDbU6n
— Prison Mitch (@MidnightMitch) May 7, 2024
OOF. Too soon?
OK, the jokes are turning dark now. We should probably stop. We know that many people have strong emotions about putting animals in zoos at all, and we understand that. And even more people have strong emotions about China and we get that too.
But just for a few minutes, we hope everyone was able to take a short break from all of that and just enjoy some lighthearted humor at what appears to be a harmless stunt from the zoo.
You have to admit, the panda dogs are pretty darn adorable.
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