Parents recall terrifying moment giraffe pulls daughter, 2, out of their car at safari park

People all around the globe have been left shocked after footage emerged of a giraffe lifting a toddler out of the sunroof of a vehicle in Texas.

The distressing scenes took place at Fossil Rim Wildlife Center over the weekend, with attendees looking on helplessly.

One of the safari park attendees in question was Lindsey Merriman, who was enjoying a day out with her family when terror struck.

Lindsey was several cars behind the vehicle that the giraffe advanced upon, and so had a safe enough distance to capture the moment on camera. You can see her footage below:

Lindsey said: "My daughter was recording a giraffe eating out of people’s hands and dipping its head in sunroofs.

"We were three cars behind a red truck and saw the giraffe accidentally grab a little girl’s shirt along with the food and lift her from the bed of the truck."

The little girl in question was later identified as two-year-old Paisley Toten.

Crucially, she was unharmed.

Now, her parents have opened up about the fateful day.

Jason Toten, Paisley's dad, told KWTX: "We stopped to feed the giraffes, and I turned around to look out the back window, and I saw the giraffe kind of digging around right there, and then it just grabbed her, and I didn’t see her no more."

The footage appears to show an adult's arms shoot into the air in an attempt to aid Paisley.

The child can be seen being lifted out of the car by her shirt. (Lindsey Merriman via Storyful)

It has been surmised that the giraffe made an attempt to eat the food clasped in Paisley's hands, but accidentally clasped its teeth around her t-shirt.

This led to the animal pulling her partially out of the sunroof.

Jason told WFAA: "My heart stopped."

Her mum Sierra Robert added: "Before I even reached out to grab her, he had already dropped her out of his mouth."

So it seems there was no harm intended by the giraffe.

The safari park, Fossil Rim, have since issued a statement.

They told ABC: "We were recently made aware of an incident involving one of our giraffes that occurred this past weekend.

Paisley's parents opened up about the terrifying experience (WFAA)

"The incident was first reported to us on Monday June 3. The safety of our guests and animals is always of utmost importance to us.

"Although an incident like this has never occurred here previously, we are taking immediate action to make sure it won't happen again."

They continued: "Effective immediately Fossil Rim will no longer be allowing guests to ride through the park in truck beds.

"Fossil Rim offers a variety of experiences guided by knowledgeable staff so guests can continue to have up-close and memorable animal encounters, and support our mission to save threatened and endangered species."

Tyla previously reached out to Fossil Rim for comment.