River otter drags child off dock and underwater in rare attack at Washington marina

(CNN) — A child was dragged off a dock and underwater in a rare attack by a river otter at a marina in Washington state on Sept. 12, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife said.

The otter pulled the young child underwater with the mother still on the dock at Bremerton Marina in Kitsap County.

Moments later, the otter resurfaced and the mom rescued her child out of the water. But the animal continued to attack, biting the mother’s arm, according to a news release from the fish and wildlife agency.

The otter kept chasing the family as they tried to get off the dock. The child was left with scratches and bites on top of their head, as well as on their face and legs, and taken to a local hospital to be treated for the injuries, which officials described as minor.

Department of Fish and Wildlife Sergeant Ken Balazs praised “the mother’s quick actions and child’s resiliency.”

The US Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services worked to trap and “lethally remove” any river otters from the marina. One river otter was trapped where the attacked happened and transported to the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Lab to be evaluated and tested for rabies.

River otters are relatively common throughout Washington and can be found in fresh, brackish or saltwater habitats, according to the agency. “Although encounters with river otters are rare, they can be territorial and, like any wildlife, are inherently unpredictable,” the news release warned.

There have been six documented human-river otter incidents in Washington state in the last decade, according to wildlife officials.

Last year, three women were attacked by an otter while inner tubing down the Jefferson River in Montana. All three women received treatment for their injuries. One of the women had “more serious” injuries and was flown to a hospital via helicopter.

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