River otters caused havoc on the Daajing Giids docks last week.
Two otter attacks on dogs in as many hours on Monday, Aug. 20 have dock managers and users reminding people to watch small children and leash their dogs while walking the dock.
The first attack occurred around 9 a.m. and resulted in a golden retriever getting a bite on the nose.
The second attack happened to a 35-pound, mixed-breed dog owned by Heather Kolankowski and her husband Mike. They were working inside their boat about an hour later when they heard a series of growls, yelps, and a splash in the water.
Mike made it outside the boat in time to see a river otter pull their dog, Mori, under the water.
Determined to save his pet, he reached deep into the water, where he could barely reach her collar. When he pulled Mori out, the otter was still on her rear leg.
“He couldn’t see the otter clearly, but I was able to determine it was definitely an adult,” said Heather.
The dog and the otter slipped back into the water a second time, leaving Mike scrambling to retrieve Mori again.
He successfully pulled the panicked pup out of the water and shook the dog until the otter released its prey.
Heather grabbed Mori and took shelter in their boat while Mike continued to yell and threaten the otters.
“They were still determined to get the dog,” Heather said. Moments later, the two otters vanished under the dock.
“I didn’t see it, but we sure heard it,” said Dan Winter, wharfinger for the Queen Charlotte Harbour Authority in Daajing Giids.
“We heard an ungodly squeal and we weren’t sure if it was human or animal. It turned out to be human, dog and otter.”
Mori sustained bites to her foreleg, hindleg, and underbelly. She had a video consult with the virtual veterinarian who prescribed antibiotics and pain control while she healed.
This is not the first river-otter attack on Haida Gwaii.
Several years ago, there was a series of attacks on dogs on Moresby Island and one dog was killed.
Sandspit resident Emmy O’Gorman remembers her dog chasing two river otters into the water near the Onward Point gazebo back then.
The otters teased the dog out further into the water, O’Gorman said.
“When she was halfway to Skidegate, they went under and started attacking her from below,” she said. “It was pretty horrifying to witness.”
Her dog made it back to shore but was wounded and exhausted.
“She had lots of bite wounds to her underbelly. She was a tough old girl.”
O’Gorman says there is still an otter’s den near the area and she won’t take her dogs there unleashed.
Dan Winter says he heard of an attack on the Daajing Giids dock last year and regularly cleans up after otters.
“In the winter months, they make a big mess on the dock,” he said.
Winter said people who live at the harbour guess there are two adults and four seasoned pups causing the issues.
River otters are known to be aggressive when protecting offspring and dens, although there is no known direct cause for the recent attacks.
But harbour residents see a seasonal pattern, where the otters are more aggressive during warmer months.
Haida Gwaii Conservation Officer Tony Maestrello said he gets a call about otters every few years, usually in summer, but dealing with otters is outside the mandate of the conservation service.
Otters are considered furbearers and are protected, but they can be legally trapped between Oct. 1 and May 31.
With his own hands tied, Maestrello recommended that the Harbour Authority hire a trapper to remove the otters.
In the meantime, the local conservation office has posted signs warning the public about aggressive otters and suggesting they leash their dogs.
Winter says if any trappers want to get the appropriate license to remove the otters from the area, they should contact him at the dock.
Mori the dog is expected to make a full recovery.
Mori’s neighbours sent well wishes, including a get-well card from neighbourhood children.
“Many other of our neighbours have paused in their walks to ask about Mori’s welfare,” said Heather Kolankowski.
“Daajing Giids is a wonderful place chock full of caring people.”