Want a glimpse of a counterfeit panda?  Go to: http://www.sznews.com/humor/2012-06/08/content_6820640.htm.

Fake pandas are easy enough to counterfeit – if you don’t mind painting up a shizu or other dog and hope that it doesn’t bark too much.   The Chinese press labeled these “shanzhai” (counterfeit/mountain stronghold) pandas, back in 2008.  This “innovation” appeared to have first appeared in Jilin Province.

Jacob Johanson recently posted on linkedin, another story – about a counterfeit African mountain lion in a Henan zoo.  (https://www.linkedin.com/groups/IN-CHINA-EVEN-ZOO-ANIMALS-4972308.S.5891817830172626948)   In this case the mountain lion was a dressed up Tibetan mastiff, at least according to Chinese news reports in 2013 (http://pinglun.eastday.com/c10/2013/0818/20675630.html).   Unlike the counterfeit panda, the Chinese media has suggested that the counterfeit mountain lion could have been created to fraudulently draw visitors to the zoo.

There are many other notable China inspired counterfeits.   Domestic cultural treasures like the terra cotta warriors have been charged with fakery (https://chinaipr.com/2014/02/23/truth-or-false-dream-of-the-red-chamber-and-the-terra-cotta-warriors/).   My favorite is the fake jail that manufactured fake cigarettes.(https://chinaipr.com/2014/06/09/jail-house-inventors-and-fake-jail-infringements/).   Living in China you might also notice when other countries engage in this type of fakery.  Consider for example the Wa state in Burma, which some Chinese consider a counterfeit (shanzhai) version of China.  (http://archive.today/cF98A).