Strange

Otter Attack West Boca Raton: William Gibbons Cell Phone Video

by NowPublic Staff | November 26, 2010 at 03:05 pm

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Caught On Tape: Otter Attacks West Boca Raton Resident William Gibbons, Video

An otter with a habit of attacking and biting people is on the loose in West Boca Raton, Florida. William Gibbons captured his attack with his cell phone, videoing the mean tempered otter.

William Gibbons was by himself when the incident took place outside his parents’ home near Yamato Road and 441.

“I was locked out of the house,” explains Gibbons, “I went around to the backyard and saw an otter laying in the grass. I began observing the otter, and it came out of the water and bit me.”

William Gibbons, 18, has received a series of rabies shots as a precaution. Apparently, Gibbons was the third person to be attacked by the otter in the Boca Raton area recently.

The animal attacked two people and a dog earlier in the week. Health officials are warning residents in Boca Raton that the otter may have rabies. "I say that because this behavior is not common of otters, especially a healthy one," said Dave Walesky of Palm Beach Co. Animal Control.

Experts said otters can be spotted in western portions of Southeast Florida and aggressive behavior could be just a mother protecting her pups or a sign of rabies. "I've never heard anything about rabid otters at all," said Gibbons, "until after the fact."