Woman mauled by pack of wolves outside Paris after staying in 'safari-style lodge'

Thoiry zoo

A woman was mauled by three wolves in a zoo just outside Paris while she was out for a jog (pictured)

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Georgina Cutler

By Georgina Cutler


Published: 24/06/2024

- 18:26

The jogger was bitten 'on the neck, the calf and the back' during the vicious attack

A woman was mauled by three wolves in a zoo just outside Paris while she was out for a jog, a police source has said.

The 37-year-old victim had spent the night in a safari-style lodge before she was bitten "on the neck, the calf and the back" at the Thoiry zoo.


The woman's life is said to be in danger, according to Maryvonne Caillibotte, chief prosecutor in Versailles.

It is understood that the jogger went out alone after spending the night with her family in a safari-style lodge inside the zoo.

Woof at Thoiry zoo

The 37-year-old victim had spent the night in a safari-style lodge before she was bitten 'on the neck, the calf and the back' (stock image of wolf at Thoiry zoo)

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However, the woman "ended up in the safari zone, which is supposed to be restricted to cars. That's where she was attacked by three wolves," Caillibotte told the Le Parisien newspaper.

She added she was unsure "whether she made a mistake or the trail wasn't clearly marked".

According to zoo adverts, lodges offer "a one-of-a-kind, very intimate experience with the arctic wolves you'll be able to see from the living room".

Caillibotte said first responders arrived at the scene "very quickly" as the wolves were "moved away, then returned to their area".

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The woman was reportedly confronted by the animals after entering a prohibited area.

A source close to the case said the victim must have passed through "security systems, a trench and an electric fence supposed to keep the animals in".

On Sunday, the woman "crossed the enclosure on foot", a reserve "which is only accessible by car", the chief executive officer of the Wow Safari Thoiry park, Christelle Bercheny, told reporters.

A police investigation has been launched following the horror incident.

Wolves

According to zoo adverts, lodges offer 'a one-of-a-kind, very intimate experience with the arctic wolves you'll be able to see from the living room'

Getty

Thoiry zoo was founded in 1968 by Paul de la Panouse, who then sold the zoological park to a group of investors in 2018.

In April, he told regional newspaper L' Independant how he originally stocked the zoo with 120 animals brought from Kenya.

The Wow Safari Thoiry zoo in Yvelines, is located 25 miles west of the French capital.

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