California sanctuary reopens after attack
A California wildlife sanctuary reopened on Sunday after a 24-year-old intern was killed in a lion attack last week.
According to David Haden, Fresno County Coroner, the lion escaped a smaller pen, and attacked intern Dianna Hanson while she cleaned a larger area of the enclosure.
The lion, known as Cous Cous, was fatally shot by a sheriff's deputy in an effort to stop the attack, but the coroner's report states that Dianna died immediately of a broken neck.
With the permission of her family, Cat Haven has reopened and is resuming normal operations. The private zoo, which is run by the not-for-profit organisation Project Survival, observed a moment of silence for Dianna.
Speaking in response to the incident, Craig Packer, ecologist at the University of Minnesota said: "It's easy to forget that [lions] react to meat with the reflexive instincts of a shark…these attacks happen when people forget about the shark inside."
Fresno County Sheriff Margaret Mims, said: "We believe this was an accident, an error." Hanson's family reportedly believe the death was accidental, and protocols were followed at Cat Haven.
It was announced last week that a fund has been set up in Hanson's memory, and her family have urged people to donate to the wildlife organisations she loved, including Cat Haven.
The BSAVA has opened submissions for the BSAVA Clinical Research Abstracts 2026.
