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AJ Numanty Perry is learning the hard way that Australians are very sensitive about one of their native animals. The singer is being criticized for telling her dog to “go chase some koalas” in an advertisement for an Australian department store.
Apparently, dogs attacking the endangered marsupials is a major problem in the country. Wildlife experts and animal lovers expressed their disgust over the ad on the social media.
“Koalas attacked by dogs is one of their biggest threats and primary reasons for presenting to wildlife hospitals across Australia,” Gold Coast wildlife vet Claire Madden tells The Courier-Mail.
According to Queensland’s Department of Environment and Heritage Protection, approximately 110 koalas are attacked and killed by dogs each year.
Following the criticism, the department store chain, Myer, announced that it is would be pulling the ads.
“Thanks for your comments in relation to Katy Perry’s Witness: The Tour ad,” the company wrote on Twitter. “We are currently removing the material which references koalas.”
Myer is sponsoring the Australian leg of Katy’s tour.
We're bringing @katyperry's Witness tour down under! Learn more: httpss://t.co/5Oc9iCTilM #WitnessKatyPerryatMyer pic.twitter.com/JvDHIlPJwo
— MYER (@myer) July 2, 2017
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