Dog Dyed To Look Like Pikachu, Owner Fined In South Florida

MIAMI, FL — A South Florida man was fined by Miami-Dade County Animal Services after bringing a Pomeranian dyed to look like the cartoon character Pikachu from “Pokemon” to a recent Miami Heat basketball game, according to multiple reports.

The red-and-yellow pup, ZaZa, was spotted sitting courtside with Erik Torres at the Heat’s Dec. 26 win against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

The dyed dog was already on Animal Services’ radar after being spotted Dec. 21 at Torres’ store, World Famous Puppies, according to WFLA.

“Pikachu was in the store,” Kathleen Labrada, the agency’s assistant director, told NBC Miami. “There was a staff member holding the dog in her lap. We obtained a photograph at that time.”

World Famous Puppies shared pictures and videos of ZaZa on its Instagram page in recent months, including from her recent attendance at the Heat game.

It’s illegal to own, sell or give away any dyed or artificially colored animals in the county, reports said. Torres was fined about $200.

He told WSVN, though, that he’s not sorry for the dye job.

“I’m not going to apologize, because at the end of the day, I knew exactly what I was doing,” he said.

Torress said ZaZa wasn’t harmed by the dye and there was no skin irritation.

“I did my homework, I did my research, and I knew that in no way or form would this affect my animal, my dog,” he said.