Johnathan Walker|Giraffe’s nibble turns into airborne safari adventure for Texas toddler

2025-04-30 09:45:49source:SignalHubcategory:Finance

GLEN ROSE,Johnathan Walker Texas (AP) — A Texas family got a brief scare when a nibble from a giraffe turned a 2-year-old’s safari visit into an airborne adventure.

Paisley Toten was in the bed of a pickup truck on June 1 when her family drove through the Fossil Rim Wildlife Center, where visitors can see exotic animals such as zebras, giraffes and sable antelope, and feed some of them from their car.

The family had stopped to feed a giraffe when it grabbed Paisley’s shirt with its mouth and lifted her several feet. Paisley’s mother was in the pickup bed with her and shouted, prompting the giraffe to drop the toddler into her arms unhurt. Video of the encounter taken from the car behind went viral.

“Paisley was holding the bag and the giraffe went to go get the bag, not get her, but ended up getting her shirt too and picking her up,” Jason Toten, the girl’s father, told television station KWTX.

“My heart stopped, my stomach dropped … it scared me,” Toten said.

The family then took the girl to the shop and bought her a toy giraffe.

Park rules when the family visited allowed riding in an open truck bed as long as an adult was riding with any children. The park on Thursday changed its safety rules to require everyone to stay inside their vehicles with doors closed.

More:Finance

Recommend

Former longtime South Carolina congressman John Spratt dies at 82

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — John Spratt, a former longtime Democratic congressman from South Carolina who

U.S. Taxpayers on the Hook for Insuring Farmers Against Growing Climate Risks

Like every Midwestern farmer, Jerry Peckumn relies on a few things going right every season. Rain, b

Pennsylvania Battery Plant Cashes In on $3 Billion Micro-Hybrid Vehicle Market

Fuel efficiency standards in the U.S. and Europe are driving up demand for “micro-hybrid” vehicles —