4-Month-Old Baby Otter in Punggol Dies After Getting Fish Hook Stuck In Throat; 3rd Fish Hook Incident Since Aug 2020

It’s the start of another work week and we wonder where the weekend went.

Other than binge-watching Netflix, I was also ogling at cute baby Otters pictures on my phone.

Anyone else has the same past time?

*Silence*

Ok never mind.

But no matter whether you’re crazy over otters or not, one thing we can all agree on is this shouldn’t have happened to a baby otter.

What is this, you ask?

Well, this: A four-month-old otter pup found dead with a fish hook in her throat on 5 Sep.

Baby Otter Was Found Already Injured Previously

This cute pup hailing from Punggol has four other siblings. What’s more heartwrenching is that the family had just lost the mother recently on August 10 when she was found on Coney Island.

The four-month-old was already spotted with the fish hook in her mouth for quite some time.

However, teams from NParks and ACRES wildlife weren’t able to catch the pup and send her for treatment due to the pup’s fast agility.

The fish hook was 1.5cm long according to an image.

Unable to eat and drink, the pup succumbed to her injuries and passed on.

Dispose Of Your Fish Hooks Responsibly

Ottercity urges recreational anglers to dispose of their fish hooks responsibly, so as to prevent such incidents from happening again.

Should there be wildlife close to fish lines, anglers are also urged to lift their fishing rods up to prevent the wildlife from getting injured.

Though the fish hook looks small under human eyes, this small little steel can be lethal.

A Spate Of Fish Hook Incidents Since Aug 2020

There are similar incidents of people and cats getting injured by fish hooks.

A 10-year-old girl’s toe was pierced by a fish hook while she was walking along East Coast Park.

And a very lucky cat on St John’s Island almost succumbed to a fish hook after swallowing it, if not for the presence of a very skilled vet who managed to remove it safely in an operation.

In both incidents, hobby anglers were asked to dispose of their hooks responsibly.