ANIMAL ATTACK FILES
Report forwarded to the Animal Attack Files by Special Correspondant P. Johnson:
From the North American Fisherman Official Publication of the
North American Fishing Club October/November 1998
| Wisconsin Man Catches a Tiger by the Toe
Undated |
| Dodgeville, WI
The story involving Dan Droessler of Platteville, Wisconsin and a hungry tiger muskie is one right out of the "Can you believe it?" file. Dan was dangling his foot over the side of his canoe on Twin Valley Lake when a 36-inch muskie decided it was time for a snack. The bite, naturally, startled Dan, who jerked his foot (and the fish) out of the water and into the canoe. But the story doesn't end there. Sporting 60 new stitches in his foot, Dan agreed to be interviewed by a local reporter. He told the writer he kept the fish and planned to have his unusual trophy mounted. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources stepped in, however, confiscating the fish with the explanation that it wasn't caught on hook-and-line and that it didn't meet the 40-inch minimum length limit. Droessler pled his case, though, and was allowed to keep the fish after paying a $10.55 special permit fee. This isn't the first time a muskie has chomped a human. Back in 1995, a 14-year-old Minnesota boy, swimming at a public beach on Lake Rebecca, was bitten on the right hand and wrist. He was leaving the water during a routine safety break called by lifeguards when the fish attacked. The 38-inch fish was netted by fisheries personnel and relocated to another part of the lake. |