St. Pete Family Horrified As Otters Kill Treasured Pet Dog

ST. PETERSBURG, FL – Florida pet owners are well aware of the danger coyotes, gators, snakes and even hawks pose to their pets. But Marilyn and Jack Frieman of St. Petersburg never imagined that the otters that frolic behind their home on Boca Ciega Bay could be a threat to their 13-year-old Papillon dog.

The Friemans were spending a pleasant Easter Sunday at home with their family when they heard their grandson emit a hair-raising scream.

He had gone out the back door and discovered their 5-pound dog, Bucky, lying on the patio, battered and bloodied after being attacked by otters.

“He was just crying and screaming and yelling about Bucky,” said Marilyn Frieman.

Otters had crept onto the Friemans' patio surrounding their pool and viciously attacked the little dog.

The family caught a glimpse of Bucky’s attackers before they scurried back into the bay.

Their sharp claws and teeth had ripped through the little dog, gravely injuring him. The Friemans rushed him to an emergency vet but it was too late.

“We lost our little boy,” said a heart-broken Marilyn Frieman. “He was mortally wounded.”

Their pleasant Easter holiday had become a nightmare, said the Friemans' daughter, Kathie Frieman Breakiron.

“They (the otters) were very aggressive and one even tried to come after me,” Breakiron said. “We saw three otters. One jumped into the pool and then into the bay where two others were swimming.”

The Friemans have lived in their Boca Ciega Bay home for 40 years, and never imagined the otters posed a danger. Breakiron said they now look at the otters they once thought playful and entertaining in a different light.

“It was a horrific and sad night for us,” she said.

Now she’s sending a warning to her neighbors, “especially those who live directly on the bay.”

“Please be aware and do not let your dogs out by themselves, especially at night,” she said.

This isn’t the first time otters have turned vicious, however. On March 3 and 4, otters attacked four kayakers on the Braden River in Manatee County (see related story).

One otter had to be pried off 77-year-old Sue Spector, who was on a guided kayak tour with her husband. The animal bit and scratched her so badly she required stitches.

In addition to these otter attacks, the Florida Wildlife and Conservation Commission received a report that weekend of an otter acting aggressively and chasing boats on the river. The FWC posted signs at public docks along the river warning boaters to be careful.

The Friemans’ friends and neighbors were shocked to learn of Bucky’s fate.

“I have never before heard anything about otters attacking pets,” said Alene Goldstein.

But Pinellas County resident Dave Lueck wasn’t surprised.

A Florida native, Lueck has been a licensed wildlife trapper in Tampa Bay for 30 years, working under the name The Trapper Guy.

He specializes in humanely trapping nuisance wildlife and releasing them in conservation areas where they aren’t a threat to humans or their pets.

Lueck spends his days removing snakes, raccoons, opossums, coyotes, armadillos, fox, feral hogs, bobcats, bats and, yes, otters that have ventured into populated areas.

Of all the wildlife he’s handled, he said otters are the most menacing.

“Otters are one of the most dangerous animals I deal with in this area,” he said. “People think of them as these adorable animals they see swimming around and playing with each other at the zoo. But they are very strong animals with sharp teeth and claws.”

Lueck said he’d rather go up against a coyote than an otter.

“If I had to go one-on-one with an animal, I’d rather take on a coyote than an otter. Otters are vicious when they attack. They’ve developed strong muscles from swimming and can cling to whatever they’re after,” he said. “Their teeth and claws are razor sharp.”

Additionally, he said, they are intelligent and cunning, a trait that allows them to trap elusive prey like fish.

Although their primary food source is fish, they aren’t picky. They’ll eat anything they can get including small animals.

Coyotes may pose a bigger threat to domestic pets because of their increased population, Lueck said. But otters are very territorial and will attack other animals to protect their stomping grounds, especially in the spring when they give birth.

“Otter attacks are rare but they do occur,” he said. He said he recently received a call to remove an otter that kept charging at a dog.

“I think we’re seeing more attacks because the otter population is thriving so more and more people are encountering them,” Lueck said.

In addition to protecting their territories and their young, Lueck said otters have been known to attack when they contract rabies.

“You always want to be wary of an otter,” he said. “Never approach one and especially don’t feed them. I’m always extra careful when dealing with otters.”

Images via Marilyn Frieman

Bucky was killed by otters on Easter.

Image via Dave Lueck

Dave Lueck trapped this otter that had wandered into a computer repair shop from a lake behind the shopping center.