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The Chinese zoo admitted that painting the donkeys black and white to make them look like zebras was a tactic to attract visitors, but netizens were annoyed by the ‘pretty bad’ paint job.
A viral photo of the donkey painted black and white to resemble a zebra. (Photo: X)
A Chinese zoo allegedly admitted to painting donkeys black and white to pass off as zebras to attract visitors, but the attempt failed as netizens immediately recognised that they were not actually zebras.
A video went viral of a “zebra” in the Zibo City amusement park of China’s Shandong province, where a zoo worker was seen standing beside an actual donkey with black and white stripes running across its body.
What is more hilarious that the zoo workers did not paint the donkey’s face, which it made easier for netizens to realise that it was not an actual zebra. After a heated discussion online, park representatives told Chinese media that the paint job was actually a marketing strategy.
According to China-based Global News, some social media users pointed out that the stripes appeared to be either taped or dyed. The park staff said the paint job was intended to attract tourists to the zoo.
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‘Owner Did It For Fun’
A staff member from the park told the Chinese media outlet that after checking with management, the so-called zebra was indeed a donkey, with a sign clearly indicating that it was a donkey.
“The owner did it just for fun,” the staff member said. The official also noted that a local zoo had previously gained attention by dressing a dog as a panda and attempted to recreate the promotional strategy.
Despite the video’s popularity, the actual number of visitors to the park remained low, the staff member further said, meaning that the “zebra” promotional tactic failed.
Netizens Slam ‘Pretty Bad’ Paint Job
However, not all reactions to the donkey being painted black and white were positive. Some online users blasted the zoo for its “misleading and unethical” treatment of the animals for the sake of bringing in park visitors, according to the UK-based Metro.
“It’s unfair to the animals and the visitors,” a critic said on Chinese social media app Douyin. “They did a pretty bad job too,” another person wrote on Facebook, while a netizen commented, “Them stripes look a mess… looks like a piñata.”
In 2018, a zoo in Cairo, Egypt was accused of painting zebra stripes on donkeys after social media pointed out the animal’s face and ears didn’t appear to be the right size, according to the New York Post, sparking allegations of animal abuse.
