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 This is what happens when you feed an animal smarter than you. 
 
 
 
 This is the terrifying moment a dolphin leaps out of the water and bites an eight-year-old girl during feeding time at SeaWorld in Florida. 
 
 
 
 Jillian Thomas was reaching out to offer the usually friendly mammals a fish when one of the star attractions at the theme park in Orlando flew out of the water and bit her on the arm. 
 
 
 
 The shocked schoolgirl lurched backwards into the crowd, and soon discovered she had suffered three puncture wounds in the attack. ||||| Story highlights Video shows a SeaWorld dolphin lunging and biting a girl's hand for a few seconds 
 
 Her family faults SeaWorld for insufficient warnings and the response after the girl was bit 
 
 A SeaWorld spokeswoman says the 8-year-old girl got immediate treatment 
 
 She adds that the girl didn't follow "specific instructions" meant to prevent such incidents 
 
 SeaWorld defended itself Sunday from criticism from a family after a dolphin bit their 8-year-old daughter at the Orlando attraction. 
 
 A video posted online shows the girl standing along the edge of a pool, one of several people feeding dolphins. After she picks up a paper plate that once held the marine mammal's food, a dolphin lunges at her and bites her hand. 
 
 The dolphin let go after a few seconds, but not before leaving three puncture wounds on the girl's hand. 
 
 In a statement, SeaWorld spokeswoman Becca Bides said on-site "educators and animal care staff ... immediately connected with the family. In addition, a member of our health services team was in the area at Dolphin Cove and quickly responded and treated the young girl." 
 
 Yet in an interview with CNN Atlanta affiliate WSB , the family at the center of the November 21 incident faulted the central Florida attraction's staff for not warning them the dolphins might bite and for their response after the girl was injured. 
 
 "We felt powerless," the girl's father, Jamie Thomas, said in explaining their decision to post a video on YouTube. "We thought, look, we've got this video, let's make it public, and let's try to put some pressure on SeaWorld to make some changes." 
 
 The 8-year-old, Jillian Thomas, said she "accidentally held" up the paper plate, after which the dolphin "jumped up and ate the carton and bit my hand." 
 
 "I was thinking it was going to haul me into the water," she said. "And this is a little crazy, but I thought it was ... going to eat my hand off." 
 
 Jamie Thomas said those feeding the dolphins were told the paper plate should stay on the wall, "but we really didn't know why." No one signed a disclaimer, and there were no signs indicating any risk, the father said. 
 
 The girl's mother, Amy Thomas, said she was upset about SeaWorld staffers' response. 
 
 "They did not tell us to look out for any signs of infection," the mother said. "We had to ask for Band-Aids." 
 
 The Thomas family never contacted SeaWorld after leaving the park, Bides said. 
 
 She defended the attraction and its protocol, including "specific instructions to not pick up the paper trays at any time." 
 
 "Our guests are given clear instructions on how to feed the dolphins in an appropriate and safe way," Bides said. "... Unfortunately, there are times when instructions are not followed."
– An Atlanta family is at odds with SeaWorld today after a playful dolphin leaped up and bit the family's 8-year-old girl on the hand, CNN reports. The Thomases say they posted a video of Jillian being bitten in Orlando, Fla., because they weren't satisfied with SeaWorld's response to the incident. "We felt powerless," says Jillian's dad. "We thought, look, we've got this video, let's make it public, and let's try to put some pressure on SeaWorld to make some changes." In the November 21 video, you can see Jillian feeding dolphins from a paper plate when she mistakenly picked up the plate—against SeaWorld instructions—and the dolphin momentarily bit her. "I was thinking it was going to haul me into the water," says Jillian. What's more, her mother says, SeaWorld staffers never offered a Band-Aid or told them to look for signs of infection. But a SeaWorld spokeswoman says health staffers "quickly responded" to Jillian, who had been given "specific instructions to not pick up the paper trays at any time."