Man bitten by raccoon on Miami Beach Boardwalk shares ordeal – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports

MIAMI BEACH, FLA. (WSVN) – A man is speaking out and sharing his story days after, he said, he was badly bitten by a raccoon while walking his service dog on the Miami Beach Boardwalk.

The victim, who asked not to be identified or show his face on camera, said Sunday night began like any other night for him and his service dog Oliver before things took a frightening turn.

“I’ll never forget seeing the raccoon’s face, one foot from mine, as I was trying to hold it off with my hand,” he said, “and I saw the jaws clamp down around my finger, and I felt the teeth breaking the skin.”

The man said the raccoon approached him of a sudden, so there was no way for him to flee.

“Without any warning or any kind of notice that I could have gotten away, a raccoon charged out of the bushes and ran over like the speed of an attack dog and immediately started biting me,” he said.

The incident took place near 47th Street on the Miami Beach Boardwalk.

“it bit me several times on my leg. I was trying to hold my dog off to the side to make sure that nothing happened to him and pulled the raccoon off with my leg that I was lifting up on the other side,” said the man. “I ended up falling down to the ground, and the raccoon climbed on top of me and ran up and actually bit my finger then.”

The victim said the vicious critter wasn’t done.

As the raccoon came after him a second time, the man said, all he could think about was protecting Oliver.

“The second time, I managed to hold it off with my foot, and then it ran into the bushes,” he said.

Now he has marks all over his leg, arm and finger.

The victim said he went to the emergency room, where he received several rabies shots.

He said he wants the raccoon to be safely moved to another location, and he wants to let people know what happened to him.

“It’s a shame, because I loved doing this, and this is one of the reasons why I love living here, and now I’m kind of scared about doing it,” he said.

The victim said he has contacted the appropriate authorities and is waiting to hear what happens next.

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