This is the shocking moment a lioness attacked a circus worker it was being forced to jump through hoops, sparking the terrified audience to flee.
Footage shows the lioness walking around the cage in a circle and jumping through two hoops before suddenly clawing at a circus worker during a circus performance at a farm in Yuncheng, in the Chinese Shanxi province, on January 31.
A witness said the lion appeared to be visibly agitated and grew restless as the performance went on.
When a staff member outside the iron cage attempted to shoo the lion to continue the act, the lion lunged and tightly grabbed the worker’s arm with its claws.
During the struggle, the lion attempted to drag the injured handler closer to the cage bars, causing him to lose his balance and fall.
The audience was terrified, running in all directions amid screams and panic.
The situation briefly descended into chaos as other circus workers poked the lioness with metal sticks to get her to let go of the man.
The sudden attack lasted about three minutes, with staff evacuating the audience and implementing necessary safety measures.
This is the shocking moment a lioness attacked a circus worker after it was forced to jump through hoops
When a staff member outside the iron cage attempted to shoo the lion to continue the act, the lion lunged and tightly grabbed the worker’s arm with its claws. During the struggle, the lion attempted to drag the injured handler closer to the cage bars, causing him to lose his balance and fall
Footage shows the lioness walking around the cage in a circle and jumping through two hoops before suddenly clawing at a circus worker during a circus performance at a farm in Yuncheng, in the Chinese Shanxi province, on January 31
A spokesperson for the farm where the circus performance was held later clarified that the lion only tore the handler’s clothes without causing any real injury.
‘The lion has no large teeth, so it wasn’t dangerous,’ the spokesperson explained. ‘The handler wasn’t hurt – just a torn shirt.’
This comes just two months after a lion savagely attacked a man outside its cage in Lahore, Pakistan, as the man attempted to pose for a picture with the wild animal.
Footage of the attack shows the screaming man as the lion chomped down on his hip.
Two other men attempted to pry the lion’s jaw off the man as it sunk its claws into his skin, leaving the defenseless man flailing around on the floor in agony.
The man was heard pleading for his life, crying ‘Spare me!’ and ‘Please stop Simba!’ until the beast finally let go of him after three men managed to wrestle it off.
The man reportedly suffered injuries to his arm.
