Photos of a tug-of-war between visitors and an Amur tiger at Changsha Ecological Zoo in Hunan have gone viral online, with many netizens condemning the activity, China News reports.
Several human vs tiger tugs-of-war were held at the zoo on Friday as a trial of the activity, due to launch during the upcoming National Day holiday.
In order to get the tiger interested in playing with the bipedal mammals gawping at it from the other side of the glass, a live chicken is placed in a sack tied to one end of a rope, the other end is held by visitors. When the tiger grabs the bag, visitors attempt to wrest control away from the big cat. According to media reports, one group of seven visitors lost to a four year old tiger.
The game costs 45 yuan to participate in, and is, according to the zoo, designed to help stimulate the animals and avoid potential sickness that can be caused by malaise and inactivity when in captivity.
Shows involving animals are prohibited by a 2010 regulation, but zoos, including Shanghai’s very own Wild Animal Park, frequently ignore the restrictions.
[Image credit: Xinhua]
