The attack took place in a shopping area near the Altona station, west of the city center. Late on Monday evening, police said, officers hauled the wolf out of the Binnenalster lake in downtown Hamburg following calls alerting them to a sighting of the animal there and in other locations. Local media reported that it was taken to an enclosure in the outskirts of the city.
Officials believe it's likely that the wolf involved was the same one that was sighted in Blankenese, an outer suburb of the city, over the weekend. Experts believe that animal is a young wolf searching for a territory of its own that accidentally wandered into the city. Hamburg's regional government noted that wolves generally avoid contact with people and dogs, and the unusual urban environment would be very stressful.
Germany's Federal Agency for Nature Conservation said it was the first time a person was known to have been attacked by a wild wolf since the animals reappeared in the country after 150 years' absence nearly 30 years ago, dpa reported.
Wolf attacks on livestock in Europe have been a growing concern to farmers for years, however. Last year, the European Parliament voted to change wolves' status from “strictly protected” to “protected.”
Last week, the German parliament gave final approval to legislation making it easier to shoot wolves that kill or wound livestock.