Japanese man who turned into a dog now aims to become a ‘panda’ or ‘fox’

The lifelong dream of Japanese man who spent $14,000 to become a dog has explained that he’d like to try morphing into other animals as well. 

The man, Toko, is a mysterious figure.

His Youtube channel, @I_want_to_be_an_animal has roughly 65k subscribers and it rose to fame due to the gimmicks he plays as a man pretending to be a dog. The $14,000 dollars are well spent.

His suit is properly fitted, properly tied and sculpted to resemble an actual collie— one that he claims is his favourite breed among dogs and the closest to human size, easy to replicate. In his introduction video, he sits calmly with a board beside him, shuffling papers away to reveal the text beneath each one. 

Despite the uncanny resemblance to a dog, however, stiffness can be noted in his paws and his face. Both masks just slightly too artificial to be moving around the way an actual dog’s facial muscles can. But from afar, the suit can be easily mistaken. And that seems to be the entire point of this man’s story. His first video is titled, I became a collie (Realistic dog suit) and what he often posts remains in this genre. These videos start at home, with him mimicking an actual dog and performing tricks or playing with stuffed animals and turning around on his back for belly rubs. Slowly, however, the videos progress. From A dog that can write to A dog drinking coke to then taking walks outside and playing in parts of a city, all dressed in a dog costume. 

His most recent video, titled ‘A very smart dog? Did you notice this dog’s secret?’ seems to call out to those not familiar to him, and without any context, Toko does seem like a regular dog. An odd one but one, nevertheless. 

This is what he claims had been his dream ever since he was child, as he answers in his ‘Why did I want to become a dog? I’ll answer some questions’ video. “I have had a vague dream of wanting to become an animal since I was a child,” he explains, in direct response to the question. “When I fulfilled my dream, this is how it turned out.” He says that there is no dog model he was inspired by. The collie is simply the breed he likes and has no further meaning, none related to any possible connections to him or his friend’s dog. 

When asked if he’s tired of being human, he says that he has never said that and it was incorrect report. “Beware of incorrect information,” he said. In an interview with WanQol, a Japanese media portal, he has revealed the reason he has chosen the breed collie, however, is because ‘it looks real.’

“Long-hared dogs can mislead the human figure,” he said. “I met such a condition and made Collie, my favourite breed of dog.”

Toko wants to try being a fox or a cat someday, he admits to WanQol. “I’m currently researching ways to make my limbs look more like dogs. Also, when they get dirty, they get dirt and dirt on their fur, so it takes a lot of effort to clean it every time. Of course, I would like to become another animal as well. I might realistically be able to become another dog, a panda, or a bear. A fox or a cat would also be nice, but they are too small for humans to try. I’d like to fulfil my dream of becoming another animal someday,” he explained. 

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