A tense moment unfolded Sunday at the San Diego Park Zoo as a stray dog and gorilla were seen sizing each other up.
Video footage shot by a guest and aired on CBS News 8 shows the frightened dog running from one of two gorillas in the exhibit. The gorilla does not appear to have come close enough to harm the dog, which was safely retrieved and brought to the San Diego Humane Society’s nearby Escondido campus.
The canine sneaked inside the San Diego Zoo Safari Park and somehow wandered into the gorilla habitat on Sunday, Official said.
The year-and-a-half-old male shepherd dog could be seen trying to escape Frank the gorilla as families rushed to alert zoo keepers.
You can feel the anxiety from the crowd as they watch on, desperately trying to get the dog to climb out and to safety.
The gorillas chase down the pup at points, but keep their distance in an intense stare-off.
The zoo staff ended up moving the gorilla so that officers from the San Diego County Humane Society could get in and safely get the doggy out.
The staff explained the gorilla likely just wanted to scare the dog out of the enclosure, but they worried the situation would have escalated.
The dog is terrified, it could be seen panting and happily wagging his tail, then he began to run as Frank chases after him.
Officer Samantha Clark told Fox News: “When I turned up at the gorilla enclosure, he did look very nervous and afraid.”
“The dog probably felt like he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. You can tell he really wanted help because he wandered over with his tail wagging.”
The shepherd was one of three stray dogs that ran freely into the park without an owner - but he was the only one flirting with possible disaster.
The dog is a male shepherd, with no microchip. He has been placed on stray hold at our Escondido Campus, The shelter name of 'Mighty Joe Young' was given to the dog by the Animal caregivers as we search for his owner.
Humane Society is hopeful its owner will come to bring him back home.
We are so glad no one was hurt, a dog still got some work to do around gorillas.
Watch the video below:
