The relationship between humans and animals is a topic we always discuss. As custodians of the earth, we have the responsibility to love, cherish and care for all living creatures. A wildlife park in Hengshui, Hebei province, forced baby monkeys to smoke cigarettes and filmed short videos, sparking controversy. Some netizens said the behavior was suspected of animal abuse and was intended to attract attention and promote the park. The political research office of CBCGDF is paying close attention to the case and will conduct an investigation.

A video of a monkey smoking at a zoo in Wuyi, Hengshui, has caused controversy.

A wildlife park in Hengshui, Hebei province, has been accused of animal abuse by forcing young monkeys to smoke and filming short videos to attract attention and promote the park, according to Internet users.

After the post was published, it triggered a heated debate on the Internet. Some netizens said the zoo's practice was unscientific and irregular. The practice of inducing animals to behave in unnatural ways and making short videos can be harmful to their physical and mental health.

On Nov 4, the China Biodiversity Conservation and Green Development Foundation said it was paying attention to the matter and would investigate. On November 5, a hotline operator for the head of Wuyi County in Hengshui, where the zoo is located, told Red Star news that the county government had urged the zoo to verify the situation. If animal abuse does occur, it should be dealt with promptly.

Before publishing, in the short video account of Hengshui Wildlife Park, videos that were questioned by netizens such as "monkey smoking" have been deleted.

The zoo released a monkey smoking video, saying that the original intention was to promote smoking ban.

In the most controversial video, a monkey sits on a small bench with a lighted cigarette in his mouth, blinking constantly due to the stimulation of the smoke; after the cigarette was taken away, the monkey rubbed his eyes, then lay down on the ground and was covered by someone. The white cloth implies "death", and the words "smoking is harmful to health" appear in the video.

The Red Star News reporter saw in the short video account of Hengshui Wildlife Park that the zoo used the promotion of close-range feeding of hippos, ostriches, zebras, sika deer, "buying meat and feeding tigers" and other projects to attract tourists, but ignored the relationship between humans and wild animals. Keep a certain distance between them.

In addition, several short videos posted by the account show keepers playing with animals and operating improperly. For example, a man flicks a monkey's rope so quickly that it screams in terror. A woman, suspected to be trying to avoid being chased by the cubs, climbs on the edge of the cage and "drives" the cubs below with her foot, which seems to be in danger. Tiger cubs, monkeys and dogs come into close contact with each other, biting and fighting. The baby tigers sometimes press the monkey under their bodies and tear the monkey's clothes, raising concerns about the baby being bitten.

On November 4, red Star news reporter called hengshui Wildlife Park complaint hotline. The caller responded that the most controversial "monkey smoking" video was a public service video to promote "smoking is harmful to health". The monkey in the video is posing with a cigarette, not smoking.

Original Chinese article: https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/SODVKIrqqmVS9KOn1-lZsg
Translator/ Lucy
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