Porcupine, python strut catwalk for Russian
zoo
Leggy models shared the catwalk with
a porcupine, a python and a yak on Sunday 24 May at a fashion show
to raise public awareness of animal welfare and Saint Petersburg's
zoo.
About a dozen animals in all -- some on leashes, others in the
models' arms -- strutted their stuff for the zoo, one of the oldest
in Europe but hard-pressed for funds.
"Casting the models was not easy,"
Tatiana Fedorishenko, the zoo's deputy director, told AFP,
referring to the human kind. "The animals in the show are tame, but
the models have to be without fear, and comfortable with
them."
"It was hard," confided one of the
models, Natasha. "My fox was always trying to run away. I had
trouble finishing my walk."
The show was the idea of fashion
designers in Russia's second city, in solidarity with the 410
species and 2,000 animals at the zoo in Alexander Park that was
founded in 1865.
"I'm taking part because of my
compassion for animals," said designer Vladislav Aksyonov. "I am
flatly opposed to the use of natural fur and I also want to help
our zoo."