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Austrian woman reports otter attack in Wisconsin
Thursday, 13 August, 2009
A posting on the International Society for Infectious Diseases ProMED newsite carries the report that an Austrian woman on vacation in Wisconsin, USA is getting rabies shots after she was bitten by otters while swimming in a lake near Duluth. The 51 year old was swimming on Lake Owen last Wednesday [3 Aug 2009] when 3 otters suddenly appeared. She said they swam off when she shook her legs, but not before biting her 8 or 9 times. Although the victim says the bites didn't hurt much, she did go to a hospital, where doctors started a series of rabies shots.
Otters, like the majority of mammals, are susceptible to rabies virus infection, but attacks on humans are rare although not unknown. The ProMED-mail archive records attacks on humans in Florida and Vermont in recent years.
