10 Animal Attacks on the People Who Cared for Them

People often describe a pet as gentle, a zoo animal as familiar, or a working animal as trained. But daily contact does not make a wild animal domesticated, and even animals raised around humans remain powerful and unpredictable.

The attacks in this list involved keepers, trainers, owners, and family members. Some had cared for the animals for years; others had only recently begun working with them. In a few cases, warning signs had appeared beforehand. In others, investigators could not identify a clear trigger. These ten incidents show how quickly a human-animal relationship can become dangerous.

Related: 10 Orca Quirks That Will Make You Forget the Boat Attacks

10 The Elephant That Killed Its New Keeper

On August 26, 2015, an elephant in northern Thailand killed a mahout—a keeper who works with elephants—and ran into the jungle with three Chinese tourists still riding on its back. The tourists, a father, mother, and young child, were eventually brought safely back to camp after other mahouts calmed the animal.

Police said the elephant had not taken easily to its new keeper, who was unfamiliar with it. The incident occurred in Mae Wang district, Chiang Mai province, where elephant rides were a popular tourist attraction. Animal-rights campaigners have criticized the industry for demanding schedules and harsh training methods, which they say can cause elephants severe stress. The attack was a tragic reminder of the risks faced by both elephant handlers and tourists.^[1]

9 The Cassowary That Killed Its Breeder

In 2019, 75-year-old Marvin Hajos was killed by a cassowary on his farm near Gainesville, Florida. Hajos bred the large flightless birds, which are native to Australia and New Guinea. Authorities said he fell near one of them, which then attacked him. He was taken to a hospital but died from his injuries.

Cassowaries can stand up to 6 feet (1.8 meters) tall and weigh as much as 130 pounds (60 kilograms). Each foot has a long, dagger-like claw. Florida wildlife officials require owners to have substantial experience and meet specific enclosure standards. Investigators described Hajos’s death as a tragic accident, and the cassowary remained secured on the property while they looked into what had happened.^[2]

8 The Family Dog That Attacked a Toddler

On March 22, 2026, a family dog attacked a toddler named Julius in his bedroom in Midlothian, Texas. His mother, Kelsey Marie Welch, said the pit bull mix jumped onto the bed and repeatedly bit her son, including on the back of his head. When Welch tried to pull the dog away, it bit her leg, too. She eventually managed to secure it in the room.

Julius was airlifted to Cook Children’s Medical Center, where he underwent nine hours of surgery and received a blood transfusion. He began recovering after doctors removed his breathing tube. Welch said she had owned the dog since it was six weeks old and that it had never shown aggression before. Authorities euthanized the dog, and no charges were filed.^[3]

7 The Chimpanzee That Attacked Its Owner’s Friend

In 2009, a 14-year-old chimpanzee named Travis attacked Charla Nash, a friend of his owner, Sandra Herold, in Stamford, Connecticut. Herold and her late husband had kept Travis as a pet for 14 years, and Nash had interacted with him many times before. She was badly mauled and survived with catastrophic injuries.

Investigators found traces of Xanax in Travis’s system, but the state’s attorney said it was impossible to determine whether the drug affected his behavior. A necropsy found no disease that explained the attack. The case drew attention to the risks of keeping a powerful adult chimpanzee in a private home, even when it has been raised around people and seems familiar with them.^[4]

6 The Tiger That Attacked Its Keeper

In December 2006, Tatiana, a 350-pound (159-kilogram) Siberian tiger at the San Francisco Zoo, reached through her enclosure’s bars and mauled keeper Lori Komejan during feeding time. Dozens of visitors watched as the tiger grabbed Komejan’s arm. She survived with deep lacerations.

Tatiana attacked again a year later. On Christmas Day in 2007, she escaped from her enclosure, killed 17-year-old visitor Carlos Sousa Jr., and injured two others before police shot her. The earlier attack on Komejan had not prevented the later tragedy, which prompted scrutiny of the zoo’s enclosure and safety procedures.^[5]

5 The Lion That Killed Its Keeper

In February 2024, Olabode Olawuyi, a veterinary technologist in charge of the zoological garden at Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria, was attacked while feeding lions. He had cared for the animals for about nine years, since they were cubs. University officials said colleagues tried to intervene, but the lion had already inflicted fatal injuries. Another worker was also injured.

The attack shocked the university community, where Olawuyi had spent years looking after the animals. His death underscored the danger of working closely with large predators, even for an experienced caretaker who had raised them from birth.^[6]

4 The Orca That Killed Its Trainer

Tilikum, a captive orca at SeaWorld, became internationally known after he killed trainer Dawn Brancheau in 2010. The attack renewed debate about keeping orcas in captivity. The 2013 documentary Blackfish later examined Tilikum’s history and the circumstances surrounding Brancheau’s death, bringing new scrutiny to SeaWorld’s treatment of the animals.

Tilikum had been captured near Iceland as a young whale and spent more than three decades in captivity. He was linked to three human deaths during his life, though the incidents took place in different circumstances and at more than one marine park. SeaWorld announced his death in 2017, after veterinarians had treated him for a serious bacterial lung infection.^[7]

3 The Movie Bear That Killed Its Trainer

In April 2008, Rocky, a 5-year-old, 790-pound (360-kilogram) grizzly bear that had appeared in Hollywood films, attacked and killed trainer Stephan Miller at an animal training center in California. The attack happened while Miller was filming a promotional video. He was bitten in the neck and could not be revived.

Rocky had appeared in the Will Ferrell comedy Semi-Pro, in which he performed a wrestling scene with Ferrell’s character. A relative described Miller and the bear as play-wrestling before the attack, but authorities did not establish a cause. Rocky’s fate remained undecided at the time because the attack happened on private property outside state authorities’ jurisdiction.^[8]

2 The Camel That Killed Its Sanctuary Owner

In 2014, Richard Mileski, the owner of a wildlife park in Tulum, Mexico, was fatally attacked by a camel. Rescuers had to use a rope attached to a pickup truck to pull the animal off him. Local officials said the camel kicked and bit Mileski before sitting on him, causing fatal injuries.

Investigators did not establish why the camel attacked. One unconfirmed account was that Mileski usually gave it a soft drink and had not done so that day. The incident also drew attention to the sanctuary’s unusual collection of animals: Mexican authorities seized the camel and other wildlife at the facility while they investigated its ownership and care.^[9]

1 The Pet Hippo That Killed Its Owner

In 2011, South African farmer and army major Marius Els was killed by Humphrey, a 2,650-pound (1.2-metric-ton) hippopotamus he had raised as a pet. Els rescued the animal when it was young and described their bond as like that of a father and son. He rode Humphrey and swam with him, convinced the hippo was a “gentle giant.”

There had been warning signs. Humphrey had chased canoeists on a nearby river, forcing them to spend hours in a tree, and was blamed for killing calves owned by Els’s business partner. The hippo also escaped its enclosure and chased golfers. Els’s body was eventually found submerged in the river where Humphrey had attacked him.^[10]