The family of a 2-year-old had quite the scare over the weekend after a close encounter with a giraffe was caught on camera.
While visiting Fossil Rim Safari Center near Glen Rose, Texas over the weekend, 2-year-old Paisley and her mom, Sierra Robert, were riding in the bed of their family’s truck while feeding the animals.
In a video, Paisley’s mom asked her daughter if she wanted to feed the giraffe before helping the 2-year-old hold out her hand for the animal to feed. The giraffe instead scooped Paisley up by her shirt and lifted her up out of the truck bed.
The encounter was caught on video by passengers in a vehicle behind Paisley and her family.
Despite the shocking incident, which unfolded quickly, Paisley was not injured.
Jason Toten, Paisley’s dad said they believe the giraffe was only trying to get the bag of food, which Paisley was unknowingly holding too close to her body. When the animal went for the bag of food, it got the 2-year-old’s shirt for a brief moment instead.
“It was an accident and the giraffe didn’t mean to — it was just one of (those) things that happened,” Toten said.
Following the incident, the family took Paisley straight to the gift shop where they bought her a toy giraffe and a matching shirt.
“We’re gonna revisit. We’re not mad at the giraffe. We’re not mad at the park,” he said.
“We’re still gonna encourage everybody else to go visit,” he continued. “It’s a great place to go, especially for toddlers or kids really that love animals.”
After video footage of the giraffe lifting Paisley from the vehicle came out on social media, the safari park took immediate action.
Fossil Rim Safari Center Updates Safety Policy
On June 5, Fossil Rim Safari Center told NBC News that the safety of its guests and animals is “always of utmost importance,” and that while an “incident like this has never occurred” at the park before, it would be taking action.
“Effective immediately Fossil Rim will no longer be allowing guests to ride through the park in truck beds,” the center said in a statement. “Fossil Rim offers a variety of experiences guided by knowledgeable staff so guests can continue to have up-close and memorable animal encounters, and support our mission to save threatened and endangered species.”
Paisley’s mom Sierra posted about the family’s trip to the safari park on Facebook writing, “It was a blast buttttt…. I would discourage you from riding in the back of the truck.”
