An enraged river otter jumped onto a dock at Bremerton Marina in Washington and attacked a young child. The otter grabbed the kid and pulled them underwater as the child's mother watched in horror. When the otter resurfaced, the mother pulled her child back onto the dock.
"The child's mother was able to lift the child out of the water while the otter continued to attack and was subsequently bit in the arm," stated the Washington Department of Fish & Wildlife. "The river otter continued to pursue the family as they left the dock. The child sustained scratches and bites to the top of the head, face and legs."
(It's not clear from the statement whether it was the child or the otter who was bit in the arm.)
"We are grateful the victim only sustained minor injuries, due to the mother's quick actions and child's resiliency," said WDFW Sergeant Ken Balazs.
From the WDFW:
WDFW Fish and Wildlife officers contacted the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Wildlife Services to trap and lethally remove river otters from the marina. One river otter was trapped at the scene. The animal is being transported to the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Lab for further evaluation, including testing for rabies[…]
There have been six documented human-river otter incidents in Washington in the last decade.
Previously:
• Gang of violent otters is attacking people in Alaska
