Escaped petting zoo otter found in Galilee after biting hikers
Otters are generally very docile creatures, making otter attacks rare and unusual. The hikers were instructed to get vaccinated for rabies in case of possible infection.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFIsrael's otter population are facing grave endangerment.(photo credit: EYAL BARTOV)
The Ein Dibsha hiking trail in the Northern Galilee was closed off for hiking ON Saturday, following two reports of hikers being bitten by an otter.Inspectors from the Israeli Nature and Parks Authority scanned the area and located an otter cub, who was subsequently transferred to a nearby wildlife hospital, though it was determined that he was not the culprit.Otters are generally very docile creatures, making otter attacks rare and unusual.The hikers were instructed to get vaccinated for rabies in case of possible infection.In a test done on Sunday, it was found that the actual offending otter is marked with a chip, and had escaped from a petting zoo in the nearby Galilee kibbutz of Shamir, where it had been accustomed to receive food from humans.
