PSA - OTTER WARNING - ISLAND VIEW BEACH / SAANICH BC - DEC. 3, 2020

WARNING WARNING for dog owners!!
I took my Irish Terrier (Emma) for a walk on Island View Beach today. I forgot about the family of otters that live on the far end of the beach (Sidney side) . Emma is a water dog and she took off into the water after the otters. I was lucky, although she was focused on fighting the otters as they lured her out into deeper water when they ripped her walking jacket - she snapped out of 'hunter mode ' and started to paddle back to me on shore. She made it and is fine. I found out from another dog walker that this has happened before and the ending was not a happy one. Otters have the home court advantage, they attacked from under the water and can rip open a dog's belly. We were lucky. If you have a water dog, please be aware of this danger on Island View. If your dog is not a water dog you have nothing to worry about. The otter's live there, it is their home. I should have known better than to let Emma off leash in that area. I mention this to warn other dog
owners