Dog circus returns
A circus featuring 23 canine stars will stage an acrobatic performance at a shopping mall this Christmas.
The strays turned furry performers are members of Japan's Wow Wow Dog Circus, which made its overseas debut in Hong Kong during the 2005 Lunar New Year celebrations.
The canine stars will perform a variety of tricks, including rope skipping, tightrope walking and singing.
Set up 50 years ago, the circus now has about 100 dogs and 12 trainers. Although it takes numerous training sessions for the dogs to master the tricks, the well-being of the animals always comes first.
'If the dogs show signs of discomfort during training, we will stop immediately until they recover,' said Uchida Yoshihiro, who owns the circus.
Besides performing in Whampoa, the dogs will act as goodwill ambassadors. They will visit a centre for the physically handicapped and a children's hospital to bring warmth and joy to the less fortunate during the festive season.
The circus will be staged at 1pm, 3pm and 5pm at the basement of Fashion World, Wonderful Worlds of Whampoa, on Saturday and Sunday.
