It seems like there’s an increase in the number of events where people are breaking into animal enclosures at zoos just to get up close and personal with them.
Unfortunately, one of those ended tragically with death of a beloved gorilla, but perhaps this story from Nanchang City zoo in the Jiangxi Province of Southern China could change the outlook on such rare events from negative to positive.
And by positive, we mean it'll have you laughing...
The man is seen in a viral video approaching the 12-year-old and 250+ pound giant panda while it appeared to be taking a nap. As soon as it was woken up from the nap, the giant panda sprang to life, tackling the man to the ground.
Both the man and the giant panda exchanged wrestling techniques with one another for several minutes before the man finally came to his senses and got out of the animal enclosure.
At the end of the event, neither the giant panda nor the man appeared to be injured. The man reportedly did have a tear in his pants from the exchange, but no broken bones or anything severe.
But the running man certainly means the man was wrestled into submission. We'd deem the giant panda the clear winner in this skirmish.
It's worth noting that giant pandas are the icon of the World Wildlife Fund. After being considered endangered for so long, they were just recently removed from the endangered species list just two months ago, highlighting the impact animal protection can have on a species that appeared to be losing footing in nature.
Source: CCTV via Reuters