Live image of the Siberian Tiger attacking young female zookeeper. Photo: East 2 West News
This is the horrifying moment a Siberian tiger attacked a young female zookeeper in front of shocked visitors in Russia.
The Sun reports the big cat pounced on the woman as she brought food to the animal — but her life was saved by onlookers who shouted and threw things at the beast.
Men even lifted a table and chairs from a nearby cafe, hurling them over the fence to distract the 15-year-old male called Taifun, or Typhoon.
The unnamed woman, from Kaliningrad, was badly mauled but was rushed to a hospital and is expected to survive.
Dramatic pictures show the woman on her back on the ground with the tiger on top of her seemingly going for the kill.
The woman can be seen screaming in terror as the animal — which had never attacked a keeper before — swipes at her with its paws, News.com reported.
But thanks to the quick-thinking bystanders who distracted the deadly predator, the woman was able to get up and run to safety.
One witness said: “The girl’s face was bleeding — she screamed and tried to fight off the animal.”
Other zoo employees were not present at the moment of the attack, and it was left to visitors to save the keeper.
The Siberian tiger — the largest species of cat in the world — was supposed to be contained in another part of its compound when the woman brought its food.
But there was clearly a problem and the cat — described as “elderly” — was able to attack.