A 77 year-old kayaker was almost killed after being savaged by a ‘rabid’ otter.
Sue Spector required stitches on her nose and ear and now faces rabies treatment after the river creature jumped onto her kayak and lunged at her Sunday morning.
Recalling the attack on the Braden River near Bradenton, Fl., she told Fox 13: ‘It was very pristine and very nice and I heard someone make a comment that, “Oh, there’s an otter!”
‘And then all of a sudden he jumped on the kayak and two seconds later he jumped on me.’
The crazed mammal attacked Sue with such force that she toppled from her kayak, and even then refused to let go.
Sue, from Sarasota, Fl., explained: ‘I took my paddle and I tried to get him off of me and he wouldn’t let go and I kept screaming, I kept beating him with a paddle.
‘When you’re [in the middle of] it you don’t have a lot of thought except you hope you survive.’
Her husband Marty, 78, who was also in the group, had to listen to his wifes screams after the animal struck.
The otter eventually let go of Sue, with other kayakers in the group forced to keep it at bay while she got back into her boat.
Her hat was shredded by the animal’s claws during the incident, with Sue thankful that her thick lifejacket stopped it from goring her back as well.
She is now on antibiotics and faces four more treatments to ensure she did not contract rabies.
Florida fish and wildlife erected a sign afterwards warning others of the aggressive animal.
It was the second attack on the Braden River in two days, leading to speculation that the same animal was responsible for both.
Despite the scare, Sue vowed to return to the water soon, saying: ‘I’ll go back out kayaking as soon as I heal enough.’
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