Ornery Otters in Alaska

During the month of September in Anchorage there have been several reported incidents of river otters attacking humans and their pets. The first reported incident was of a nine year old boy that was bitten in the foot and leg by an aggressive otter that had broken off from its group. The otter chased after the boy and when he fell, it attacked. 

Another incident involved a woman and her dog. A group of otters converged on her dog and began attacking it and when she went to rescue her pet, they attacked her too. Otters are known to travel in groups called a bevy, a family or a romp. It is unclear if the attacks are from the same group of aggressive otters. 

Alaska Department of Fish and Game is looking into these attacks and will remove the aggressive otters if necessary. It is rare for otters to be aggressive, in response the authorities are alerting residents to be cautious, especially with their pets in the trouble areas around Anchorage. 

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