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The woman and a 7-year-old Sumatran tiger named Sanjiv were both in the tiger habitat shortly after the zoo opened, when the tiger "attacked our guardian", said Zoo Director Brendan Wiley at a press conference this afternoon.
The zookeeper suffered "lacerations and bites on the back of the head, neck, back and one arm," Wiley told reporters.
The zookeeper was taken to a local hospital where she was treated. A spokeswoman for the city of Topeka previously told CNN that the woman was "awake and alert" by the time she was taken to the hospital. She is currently in a stable state, said Wiley.
The tiger guardian of the facility is the keeper of the zoo, says Wiley, and he has been working in this space for years.
"There are not really any circumstances where they should have been in the same space, so there has been some sort of mistake that has occurred here," he said. .
He later clarified that daily cleaning and maintenance of the tiger were part of the daily process of the zookeeper, but the tiger would not have been in the space at that time.
Wiley said the zoo does not plan to euthanize the tiger. Sumatran tigers are an "extremely rare" and "endangered" species, said Wiley. Sanjiv has recently fathered four cubs.
"Although this incident is very unfortunate," said Wiley, "he did what a wild animal, what a wild tiger does."
The director gave his staff a quick and effective response that helped control the incident in 10 minutes.
A notification was sent to all zoo staff after the attack. Elephant staff members were nearby and were able to lure the tiger into his enclosure where he was safe.
"The tiger never left his space," Wiley said.
Several guests attended the attack, said Wiley. The zoo was briefly closed but later reopened.
Wiley added, "We are absolutely not concerned about the safety of our guests here."
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