Animal yoga, a growing trend where practitioners incorporate animals into their poses, has recently introduced a more unsettling participant: ball pythons. A viral video by content creator Jen Zhang on Instagram showcases this new trend, where participants perform yoga while handling these snakes.
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In the video, Zhang describes the unique experience at the yoga center where participants choose a stone upon arrival. Each stone corresponds to a specific ball python. After selecting a snake, individuals are encouraged to perform yoga with the snake draped over them. The video has garnered over 860,000 views and nearly 48,000 likes.
Public Reaction and Criticism
The video has sparked significant backlash from viewers. Critics argue that using animals in this way constitutes “animal abuse” and criticize the trend as dangerous.
One Instagram user commented, “Stop calling everything Yoga. This is not Yoga. Stop spoiling yoga’s name.” Another said, “Stop treating animals like commodities or accessories. This is not authentic yoga. This is cultural appropriation.”
Others expressed concern about the ethical implications: “This is animal abuse and absolutely disturbing,” and “The animal abuse for clout is actually disgusting.” Some suggested that if the trend resembled a cat cafe, where animals are adopted and yoga is kept separate, it might be more acceptable.