More Chinese fakery

Walt lived in China for three years. During that time he managed to learn to read perhaps a dozen words, not enough to understand the story which follows, for which thanks go to Agent 78.

Walt also learned that nothing in China should be taken to be real until proven so. Some of the fakes for which China has become infamous are pretty good. But not this one.

This is the "lion" proudly displayed by Luohe zoo, in Henan province. A visitor with her 6-year-old son in tow told the sprat that the animal was an African lion. That's what it says on the sign. "But mommy," the kid kept whining, "it's not making lion sounds. It's making dog sounds!"

Indeed. Investigation revealed that the "lion cage" was occupied by a dog -- a Tibetan mastiff, to be exact. A park official said the zoo really did have a lion, but it had been moved elsewhere for breeding purposes.

According to People’s Daily, the facility was also advertising other phony animals. Another type of dog was found in the "wolf" cage, and the snake cage, for example, didn’t actually contain any snakes -- just rats.

A Luohe City official passed the buck to the "independent contractor" responsible for running the zoo. However, he said, the contract still has a year to run so can't be terminated early. But all is not lost. The city will "urge" the contractor not to put the advertised animals in the cages, but to correct the signs! This is China!