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A toddler at ZooAmerica North American Wildlife Park in Hershey, Pennsylvania, was lightly injured by a wolf after he crawled under an exterior metal fence and reached into the wolf habitat enclosure, zoo officials said Sunday.
Officials said the child was never inside the wolf habitat, and they described the injuries as minor without providing further details.
Zoo officials said the child reached the metal enclosure around the wolf habitat on Saturday morning and put his hand through. In a statement, the zoo said a wolf then approached “and made contact with the child’s hand,” describing the response as consistent with natural animal behavior rather than aggressive conduct.
“This type of response is consistent with natural animal behavior, and was not a sign of aggression,” the zoo said in its statement. “Our habitats are designed with multiple layers of protection, and clear signage and barriers are in place to help ensure safe viewing. Guests are expected to remain within designated areas and closely supervise children at all times.”
ZooAmerica is part of the Hersheypark theme park complex in Hershey, an entertainment area known for chocolate-themed attractions. The zoo is also described on its website as having three gray wolves.
Last summer, Hersheypark drew headlines after a lost boy wandering near a monorail line above a crowd was rescued by a park visitor who climbed onto a building and jumped onto the rails; the child was unharmed and reunited with his family, according to the Associated Press report.
The Sunday statement did not indicate whether the zoo plans any changes to fencing or signage.