The boy injured in an otter attack Monday on Lake of the Woods is recovering after being treated at a local hospital for multiple bite wounds, and his experience has shined a light on a little recognized but not uncommon problem.

Two adult otters attacked and injured the boy while he was swimming. According to Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks investigator Brian Sommers, the boy received multiple bite wounds to his legs. He was treated and released Monday from St. Luke Clinic in Polson.

Fish, Wildlife  and Parks personnel searched the area of the attack but did not locate the otters. Residents on the lake were advised of the incident, which was similar to an attack last summer that resulted in the drowning death of a family’s dog on nearby Echo Lake. That attack was brought to light in a post on the Inter Lake’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/dailyinterlake).

Janina Okonski Hobday posted a brief message about how the family’s dog was “sabotaged” by otters on Echo Lake on July 26, 2013. Her husband, Brian Hobday, later recounted the story to a reporter.

He and his wife were swimming from a dock with their black Labrador, Ruger, that day. Hobday was about 100 yards from shore and Ruger was swimming back and forth between him and the dock, when Hobday noticed a chirping sound coming from the shoreline.

“The dog decided to swim over to the shore because I guess he wanted to investigate what the chirping was,” he said. “There was a downed log in the water. When he got close to the log, there were four otters sitting on the log.”

As the dog approached, the otters jumped on him.

“He yelped immediately when they attacked. He probably only yelped two or three times because they are pretty effective killers,” Hobday said.

One otter attached itself to the back of the dog’s head, pushing its muzzle into the water, while another clawed at the dog’s muzzle, doing the same. The other two were biting and clawing the dog’s body.

“I think he extinguished his breath immediately and at that point just inhaled water,” said Hobday, who swam toward the attack, only to have one of the otters come at him.

“Otters are extremely powerful swimmers, so he got to me in no time. He was about six feet away,” Hobday said. “The only thing that would slow him down was that I would yell at him.”

Hobday retreated toward shore, backstroking and yelling at the otter. When he got to shore and stood up, the otter dove at his legs but he was able to avoid the attack.

Hobday ended up grabbing a big stick and charging toward his dog and the other otters, who retreated. He got ahold of the dog and pulled it to shore, but it was already dead.

“It was a pretty terrible night. He was a special dog,” Hobday said.

Fish, Wildlife and Parks investigated but was unable to locate the otters. Hobday initially speculated that the otters may have had a den near the log, but that turned out not to be the case.

“It was just a full-on, vicious attack,” he said.

Hobday and his wife were stunned to hear about the boy being attacked on Monday.

“We heard about this and we couldn’t believe it,” he said.

John Fraley, spokesman for Fish, Wildlife and Parks in Kalispell, said, “We’re cautioning people that otters can occasionally be aggressive and people should be cautious when they see them.”

They’re a member of the weasel family and they’re carnivores and they can be aggressive.”

Just last week, a grandmother saved her grandson from an otter attack on the Pilchuck River in Washington, but she was severely mauled by the same otter.

The woman required hundreds of stitches to her face, head and body, and the boy needed nine staples to his head.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by email at jmann@dailyinterlake.com.