BILLINGS — August 2, 2023, was supposed to be a relaxing day on the river, a birthday celebration for Jen Royce with two of her best friends - but it ended with the trio literally fighting for their lives after they were attacked by river otters while floating the Jefferson River.
Royce still has a long recovery ahead of her. She declined to be interviewed by MTN News but shared her account on social media. She wrote the attack began just before dark near the Lewis & Clark Caverns on the river, when she noticed an otter behind her friend.
“I didn’t even have a chance to get the words 'there is an otter behind you,' out of me before it attacked her,” Royce wrote.
Within seconds, all three women were under attack.
“This thing was vicious and relentless. It bit my face in several places, both of my ears, my arms, my hands, my legs, my thighs and my ankle. My friends were bit on the hands and on their bottom. One friend’s thumb was shredded, and she had bite marks all over her body as well,” wrote Royce.
Royce said that because they were in the middle of the river, she was unable to reach the bottom with her feet, making it tough to defend herself.
“We were helpless. I tried to kick it away, but I would just get attacked somewhere else. I tried to hold it back at one point by grabbing its arm to hold it away while trying to swim closer to shore,” Royce wrote.
Royce also responded to allegations by some online commenters that she and her friends somehow "invited" the attack by trying to interact with or take photos with the otters:
I want to make this VERY clear because what happened has been turned (from some “kind people” on the internet) into insane victim blaming all over social media. People who don’t know or care have made this an incident of us trying to take selfies with these creatures or like we were trying to get too close to them. We did NOT do that. We were in the middle of the river at a wide stretch, not near the shore, and we didn’t even know the otter/otters were there until we were attacked.
Royce also noted of she and her friends: "We all received rabies vaccines (but will still need more rounds) and those who weren’t current received their tetanus shot as well."
Jeff Ewelt, the director of ZooMontana in Billings, said of otters: “In the wild, they are pretty territorial animals, especially around their young and and especially if resources are scarce."
While Ewelt doesn’t know why the animals attacked, he said otters can be dangerous. Despite their small size, they can cause a lot of damage, especially in the water.
“You can only do so much to fight back when you’re in the water. Those teeth, I mean they’re carnivores, they’re built to eat crustaceans and fish, so powerful bite on them. They’ve got some pretty good claws as well but it’s really that mouth that you got to watch for,” Ewelt said.
Royce and her friends know that all too well. She wrote that she thought she was going to die.
“With all my heart, I did not think I was not going to wake up if I closed my eyes and passed out. I made the choice, knowing the pain it would cause my friend to tell her I loved her and to ask her to watch over my kids,” wrote Royce.
After escaping the otters in what Royce said was a five-minute attack, she and her friends waited 53 minutes on the riverbank for help to arrive.
She has since undergone surgery and lost half of her right ear. Her ankles, legs, arm, and face were also badly punctured.
But she’s thankful to be alive after the fight of her life.
“Fighting back is going to be the best option. Because they’re not going to give up on you, especially if you’re in the water, they’re going to try to eliminate the threat,” Ewelt said.
If you would like to help, you can donate to Royce's GoFundMe by clicking here. Stephanie Johnson was another victim of the otter attack and has a GoFundMe as well.
Otter attacks have been reported in 2021 on the Big Hole River, and in 2013 near West Yellowstone on the Madison River.
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