A cheetah tried to bolt from its enclosure at Whipsnade Zoo but only managed to jump one fence during the drama.

The incident happened on a Sunday morning at 8.30am, before Whipsnade Zoo had opened its gates.

Staff acted quickly and the animal was back inside its Cheetah Rock enclosure within minutes.

A spokesperson for the zoo confirmed the incident.

She said: 'A cheetah at the zoo breached the inner fence of its enclosure.

'The animal was not able to breach the external perimeter of the enclosure to reach any visitor areas.

'Keepers on duty were quickly able to contain the cheetah and to safely move it back to a secure indoor area.

'Escaped animals procedures were put in place and all staff on site were made aware of the incident.

'No one was injured and the exhibit and the zoo opened as usual at 10am.'

An internal investigation is still ongoing, but in light of the incident, additional electric security fencing has been installed to ensure that this cannot happen again.

Whipsnade Zoo