Domino's shows Christmas spirit by attempting pizza deliveries with real reindeer

Japan is known for its obsession with small, cutesy things – but their Domino’s pizza has decided to go with big and cute this Christmas season.
Japan announced it would be using reindeer to deliver pizzas to hungry customers in the snowy northern region of the country.
The world was eagerly awaiting the sight of a team of reindeer ready to roll out with hot pizzas, not too dissimilar to Santa’s magical sleigh of flying reindeer, who  help him deliver presents to good boys and girls around the world.

The idea was meant to advertise the new GPS app, which uses a cartoon reindeer image to allow customers to track their delivery deer’s progress.
When trainers brought in the beautiful beasts, Domino’s team members quickly realized their brilliant idea was not to be.
First, team members attempted to strap the food pouches to the reindeer’s backs – which resulted in a lot of product on the ground.
Next, they attempted to use reindeer to pull a red sleigh but training operations resulted in the animals shaking their antlers too often, they refused to stop at delivery spots and the delicious cargo kept falling from their protected and heated pouches.
Needless to say, Domino’s was forced to announce Thursday their efforts would come to an immediate halt and the animals would be returned to their previous homes.
In a statement released Thursday, Domino’s Japan explained: “It hasn’t been possible to solve the [training] problems that have come up, [so] we reluctantly decided to end the reindeer delivery program. It has been difficult to control the reindeer.”
Social media users were glad to hear it as animal welfare concerns began to crop up on Twitter and Facebook announcements.
Some claimed it was “animal cruelty” while others asked questions like what they could use to “tip it” and “what happens if it eats all the pizzas instead?”
Unwilling to completely yield to failure, Domino’s Japan decided to use scooters designed to mimic the look of a reindeer, complete with antlers, plush reindeer snouts and a tail.
The scooters are admittedly less impressive than their live-animal counterparts but with the vehicles, pizzas can be delivered significantly faster and still offer a touch of Christmas spirit.
By Kenya Sinclair