Dramatic video shows tot lifted from truck by giraffe she was trying to feed (2024)

Paisley Toten, 2, was hoisted into the air when the massive creature took hold of her shirt in its mouth and lifted the child completely out of the vehicle at the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Texas

Pictures and video have captured the shocking moment a two-year-old child was snatched from the back of a moving vehicle by a giraffe.

Paisley Toten, 2, was hoisted into the air when the massive creature took hold of her shirt in its mouth and lifted the child completely out of the vehicle. Paisley was at the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center in Glen Rose, Texas, with her mum, Sierra, 23 and Jason, 24, as they fed animals from the back of their pickup on Saturday.

The youngster was lifted out of the truck when the giraffe got hold of her clothing as she tried to feed it from a bag of animal food KWTX reported . “We stopped to feed the giraffes, and I turned around to look out the back window, and I saw the giraffe kind of digging around right there, and then it just grabbed her, and I didn’t see her no more,” Paisley’s father, Jason Toten, told reporters.

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Park visitors in the vehicles behind the Toten family watched in horror as the lofty creature bent over the back of the carr and took hold of the tot’s shirt in its teeth as her mother screamed for help. Lindsey Merriman, who was travelling in a vehicle behind recalled: “My daughter was recording a giraffe eating out of people’s hands and dipping its head in sunroofs.

“We were three cars behind a red truck and saw the giraffe accidentally grab a little girl’s shirt along with the food and lift her from the bed of the truck.” Paisley’s mother also filmed the incident, she can be heard asking her daughter “do you want to feed the giraffe” in the clip before the animal reaches into the vehicle followed by her scream as the child is lifted into the air.

Passengers in the vehicles following behind said they were relieved to see the giraffe drop Paisley right back into her mother’s arms after she screamed in alarm. Fortunately, nobody was hurt. Jason added: “It scared me but after it was all over, we realised everyone was safe and unharmed, and we laughed about it. All Paisley wanted after that was a toy giraffe and giraffe T-shirt from the gift shop, so we got them for her and we will definitely be revisiting in the future!”

Fossil Rim Wildlife Center issued a statement about the incident to ABC News, saying: "We were recently made aware of an incident involving one of our giraffes that occurred this past weekend.

"The incident was first reported to us on Monday June 2. The safety of our guests and animals is always of utmost importance to us. Although an incident like this has never occurred here previously, we are taking immediate action to make sure it won't happen again."

They went on to say: "Effective immediately Fossil Rim will no longer be allowing guests to ride through the park in truck beds. 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."

Mirror Online has reached out to Fossil Rim for comment on the incident. The wildlife centre lies just three miles outside of Glen Rose in Texas, about an hour's drive from Fort Worth. On their website they outline a list of rules for those driving through the safari park.

One of these is telling people to stay in their vehicles with doors closed at all times. On their site the park says: "Most Fossil Rim animals are free-roaming and may approach the vehicle. Even animals that may seem docile to you can be dangerous.

"For visitor safety, all tailgates, van/car doors, and hatchbacks must be closed at all times and you must be seated within the vehicle - no sitting on window ledges or on top of the vehicle. Vehicles with 'soft doors', 'tube doors', or doors removed, such as Jeeps, will not be allowed to enter the park. Effective June 6, 2024, guests are no longer permitted to ride in the bed of pickup trucks."

The website also states that during the drive "only giraffes can be fed by hand". The centre says: "This is for your safety, as animals besides giraffe[s] can bite."