Cani truccati da panda: blitz della Forestale al circo Orfei http://t.co/BXYTkAS8k0 pic.twitter.com/VaFUaQPewB — Corriere della Sera (@Corriereit) December 22, 2014

Police in northern Italy have cracked down on a circus that was trying to pass off painted chow-chow dogs as panda bears.

According to the police, circus officials were charging children to have their pictures taken with two pandas. When they checked on the pandas, they found two dogs that had been dyed black and white.

The dogs appeared to be in good health, although they suffered from unusually watery eyes, likely from exposure to constant flashbulbs.

When challenged on the veracity of the pandas, the owner of the circus in Brescia, about 100 kilometres east of Milan, allegedly said that they were rare panda/dog hybrids.

The circus owner faces charges of animal abuse and defrauding customers.