Shark attacks N.S. duck hunter’s dog: ‘Her wounds were grievous’

A Port Medway duck hunter whose dog was chomped by a shark is warning others of the possibility.

The hunter – who did not want to be identified – said the attack happened Wednesday off the coast of Medway Head, Queens County.

“I have been on the ocean hunting sea ducks for years, and I am familiar with many other local hunters that do the same,” the hunter said in a written statement.

“When the ocean is calm and the ducks fall near the boat it is common practice to send a dog into the ocean to retrieve the waterfowl. This is what these dogs are bred and trained for.”

‘Erupted from below’

The hunter, who wouldn’t agree to an interview, headed out from Port Medway harbour at about 8 a.m. with his Chesapeake Bay retriever.

“There were a few other boats in the area of Frying Pan Island, just offshore of the Medway Head lighthouse. My dog, Pepper, retrieved a duck in calm waters. The second duck I shot, at about 9 a.m., fell about 20 feet from the boat. Pepper jumped in, retrieved the duck and was headed back to the boat when a large shark erupted from below her, lifting her into the air and then pushing her down under the surface. It happened so quickly and was so shocking that even though I was looking right at her when it happened, I cannot say for certain what type of shark it was.”

The hunter estimated the shark was about 2.4 metres long.

“Pepper resurfaced and struggled toward the boat where I was able to haul her to safety,” he said.

“Her wounds were grievous, and she died shortly after. To my knowledge the shark did not resurface, but I was focused on Pepper in those few moments after the attack.”

‘Extremely unusual’

The hunter returned to shore shaken.

“While I feel this is an extremely unusual occurrence, I feel obligated to share the story as a caution to other hunters, surfers and boaters. I was very close to shore, in about 20 feet of water and my dog was only in the water for a matter of minutes. To my knowledge this is the first time a dog has been taken during a sea-ducking hunt, and it is certainly the first time I have witnessed the violence of such an attack so close to my boat.”

The hunter has since contacted a shark researcher, hoping the experience will expand human understanding of shark behavior.

“I hope this information can help people enjoying the ocean to make safe choices respecting the proximity of sharks in our waters,” he said.

‘Great white for sure’

A local expert said the shark that attacked Pepper was definitely a juvenile great white. 

“It’s a great white for sure, 100 per cent,” said Capt. Art Gaetan of Atlantic Shark Expeditions. 

“There’s no other sharks here, this close in at this time of the year.” 

Great white sharks are here to eat seals, said Gaetan, who has been researching and tagging sharks for more than 30 years. 

“Maybe now people will start paying attention because we’ve got a lot of them in our waters,” he said, noting people on his tours have spotted nine great whites in the past four days. 

White sharks were always here, but their numbers are climbing because the seal population has exploded, Gaetan said. 

“When they stopped the seal cull back in the late ‘80s the grey seal population went from 40,000 to 400,000. So, there’s lots and lots and lots of food for them up here.” 

He’s never heard of a shark going after a dog. 

“But I’ve got pictures of a deer that got attacked in the first week in July,” Gaetan said. 

“It was swimming from the mainland over to an island and the shark came and attacked it and bit it and let it go. The deer washed up on the shoreline the following day.” 

He was in the area Thursday conducting a dive with a dozen people who pay money to don scuba gear and see sharks up close from the confines of an aluminum cage. 

“It can withstand the ramming of a shark, no problem,” Gaetan said. 

‘Don’t like the taste’

Sharks likely aren’t looking to attack dogs, he said. 

“That dog was in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Gaetan said. “The shark didn’t eat him. The shark only bit him and his dog bled out. Same as the deer. He didn’t eat the deer. He just bit the deer. They don’t like the taste of other mammals.” 

Signs should be posted on Nova Scotia beaches warning people about great white sharks, he said. 

“The number of sharks that are up here now is absolutely absurd. Absolutely through the roof. It’s only a matter of time, so why not be proactive instead of being reactive?” 

‘They should be’

Clair Chandler, a volunteer at the Brooklyn Marina in Liverpool Bay, said people are worried about the shark attack she described on the marina’s Facebook page.  

“That’s why I posted it; they should be,” Chandler said.  

She hasn’t seen any sharks in Liverpool Bay. 

“I haven’t heard about any sightings closer to land,” Chandler said.