Nigel Cooper, 61, is sick of otters eating his fish(Image: Nigel Cooper / SWNS)

Residents in UK town 'terrorised' by 'killer' otters breaking into gardens

Several residents in Ulverston, Cumbria, have become so sick of otters coming into their ponds and killing their Koi Carp that they've set up a Facebook action group to stop them

13 Oct 2024, 17:53 by Sean McPolin · The Mirror

People living in a UK town say they are being terrorised by a family of otters who are eating their fish.

Residents in Ulverston, Cumbria, have become sick of the creatures breaking into their ponds and killing their Koi Carp, with one man evening setting up a Facebook page to record every otter-related incident that happens in the area.

Nigel Cooper, 61, has become so fed up he created the online group to keep track of all the water animals unsavoury behaviour after he spotted on jumping into his pond and killing seven of his fish in the middle of the night a fortnight ago.

He explained: "My wife looked out of the window and there was a big otter about two metres away from her, jumping into the pond. She squealed and I thought there was a burglar, so I rang into the living room, where she was, and chased the otter around the garden.

Several people have had their Koi Carp killed by the pesky otters( Image: Nigel Cooper / SWNS)

"It then scurried over the fence. He killed around four goldfish, two Koi and three Northern Gold fish. But we were lucky, because if they get into your pond and they aren't disturbed then they can completely wipe it out.

"The otters even grab the big fish and drag them to somewhere a bit quieter, then they much through them. Some people are proper Koi experts, they can cost £20,000 to £30,000 each - they are really expensive. The otters can eat thousands of pounds worth in one night."

Nigel Cooper, 61, has set up a Facebook group for people to report what the creatures are up to( Image: Nigel Cooper / SWNS)

The former operations manager thinks the number of otters has grown recently and will continue to do so as it finds more and more food sources. He blames two or three pairs of them breeding up to three pups each in the area.

"If they are really successful, then they could have six pups in two years and then they breed," he added. "All of a sudden, the population of them starts growing. The otters in the area have been that successful with breeding so they are pushing other otters out.

"They have been forced to look for an alternative food source and they've stumbled across a pond and thought that it's good food. They've established themself somewhere around here but come into the urban areas, take the fish and then go back. It's just a case of finding where they are."

The otters were caught on video making their way into ponds and killing fish( Image: Nigel Cooper / SWNS)

Nigel admitted he loves the otters, but thinks the area has become overpopulated and its causing more problems than he and other locals want to deal with. He's advising people to try and prevent the otters from coming onto their gardens, by blocking up every hole they can and by stopping them from climbing fences.

"I love otters but I think there is too many of them in the area," Nigel said. "I've done all sorts - we witnessed it climb over a five ft fence so you need something to stop them from climbing up them.

"We've got some chicken wire rolled up on the top of it, so it should stop them from climbing up the fence. We've also blocked every hole up that we possibly can."