Teenager mauled while trying to kiss lion

A teenage girl from Montreal is recovering in hospital after she attempted to kiss a lion through the bars of its enclosure at a South African wildlife park.

The Independent reports that Lauren Fagen, 18, suffered 10 flesh wounds on her legs and feet and is now facing a two-week stay in hospital.

She told the Globe and Mail Newspaper that Duma, a male lion at the Moholoholo Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre, had been rubbing his face against the cage next to his when she decided to kiss his fur.

He then reached through the bars and dragged her legs into the compound.

CTV News reports that Ms Fagen started volunteering at the centre just two weeks ago. Her duties include cleaning the feeding cages of the animals. Although the lion was not in the feeding cage at the time of the attack, he was put into an enclosure which was attached to it.

She told CTV News: "My leg was through the bars into his enclosure... and I was in the feeding cage. He started biting my leg and scratching it, and I tried to push back with my other leg but somehow... he had both my legs up to my upper thigh inside the enclosure. The bars are quite close together so I couldn't pull them out because at my knee it got stuck, and I could see him biting me and I thought I was going to lose both my legs."

Other volunteers heard Ms Fagen's screams and came to her rescue, fending off the lions with brooms.

She is expected to make a full recovery, but is still taking painkillers.

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