Many people dream of heading to Africa to go on safari and see wild animals up in their natural habitats. I know it’s on my bucket list! But sometimes people forget that these animals are wild animals and are unpredictable. The Weather Channel shared a video on Thursday, June 27th that proves this point.

A female hiker in South Africa decided it would be a good idea to get a closer look at a beautiful giraffe. She can be seen in the video approaching the animal, stretching out her arms and continuing to approach it as the giraffe tried to walk away. The giraffe decided to let her know she was getting a little too close for comfort and gave her a kick to let her know it was time to backoff.

I think that the clueless hiker had that coming! She’s an adult and should’ve known better than to try to get that close to such a powerful animal. The Weather Channel commenters agreed. @Sharon Thrope was spot on when she said, “The giraffe said, “Stranger Danger” and acted accordingly.” @Lou Ella Greene agreed, “Good for Mr. Giraffe!” and @Liz added, “Yep, respect Mother Nature!” @Collette made me laugh with her comment, “Is the giraffe ok though? LOL!”

Related: Watch: Elephant Charges Safari Truck Full of Tourists in South Africa

Are Giraffes Aggressive Animals?

The New York Post reported that the hiker, a woman named Musiiwa Sikhwari said, “The giraffe pet my shoulder and I fell but there were no injuries.” Clearly the giraffe just gave the woman a warning, and I’m sure she understood it loud and clear! I didn’t think that giraffes were aggressive, and after doing a bit of research, I found that they normally are not. There are only a few circumstances when a giraffe would become aggressive with humans.

Giraffes are peaceful animals and rarely harm humans. They are not aggressive by nature, and like the giraffe in this video, they main defense mechanism is using their strong legs to kick. They also will ‘swat’ with their extremely long and strong necks. Male giraffes become aggressive during mating season. If giraffes sense that their babies (calves) are in danger, they will attack. They’ll also attack if they feel that they are in harm’s way or in an unsafe situation. With the woman swinging her arms around, the giraffe may have felt threatened and told the woman to give it some space. She’s lucky she didn’t get kicked harder or even trampled!

Common sense (should) tells us that wild animals should be admired from afar, and it’s never a good idea to approach one, especially since you are in its territory. People never know how wild animals will react to their presence and should show them respect. This hiker is very lucky that she only got a small push because this story could’ve ended much differently.

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