In case you haven’t heard, otters are sometimes the worst.

Let’s forget for a moment that they’re known pupnappers, serial killers, and necrophiliacs. Sure, they hold hands while they sleep. Yes, their cheeks are pinch-worthy. And okay, who doesn’t want to rock a sweet little pup to sleep?

Forget it. They can still be absolutely savage creatures.

Don’t believe us? Ask Sue Spector. The 77-year-old Florida woman who had to receive stitches and a rabies treatment after being attacked by a wild river otter.

"It was very pristine and very nice, and I heard someone make a comment that, 'Oh, there's an otter!'" Spector told a local television station. "And then all of a sudden, he jumped on the kayak, and two seconds later, he jumped on me."

Spector was kayaking on Braden River near Sarasota, Florida, with her husband and 10 other people when the animal began clawing, scratching, and biting her arms. Her boat eventually flipped over, leaving her neck-deep in water while still battling the critter.

It eventually let go and the other kayakers had to keep it away while Spector was helped back into her kayak.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is reportedly investigating reports of other kayakers injured by a river otter over the weekend, including two people who were attacked and bitten by a river otter about 1.2 kilometers (2 miles) away.

It’s likely this particular otter is rabid, considering most otters tend to steer clear of humans. The weasel was once abundant throughout North America, from Mexico to the Arctic Circle, but was hunted to near extinction from extensive trapping, urbanization, and pollution throughout the 20th century. Today, the endangered mammal is protected.

Otters have also been known to wreak havoc at zoos. A couple of otters at New York’s Bronx Zoo went totally apeshit – er, ottershit? – and drowned this monkey in a savage act of revenge. These little creatures even went so far as to kill one Montana family’s beloved black lab.

Spectors has four more rabies treatments in her future. The otter, on the other hand, remains at large.

Still don’t believe how dangerous otters can be? Maybe this video of giant otters attacking a caiman will change your mind.



