A teenager in Washington state was bitten multiple times by an unlikely attacker: a river otter.

Near her gransparents' cabin, Kierra Clark, 13, was playing in the Kalama River where it runs through southwest Washington when the otter attacked her. Animals experts suspect the otter attacked because Clark unwittingly came between the parent and its young.

"At first it felt like somebody was just, like, grabbing onto my leg with their nails, and then it felt like somebody was like stabbing me kind of," Clark told local news station KATU. "It was probably one of the scariest things ever."

Clark said she saw the otter's eyes popping out of the water and that the image of the creature's "sharp and long" teeth will be hard to forget.

It's also unlikely that she will play in the river again without a new found caution.

"I didn't really know what was in the water at first, so that was like the worst thing ever because that's like my biggest fear is to be attacked in the water," said Clark.

Clark was pulled from the water to safety by her grandfather and a neighbor. Clark's grandmother, Arlita Schlecht, said the whole scene reminded her of a horror film.

"I could see she had blood streaming down her leg," Schlecht said. "(It was like) a scene out of 'Jaws.'"

Clark's grandfather, Bob Schlecht , told KATU that it's likely the girl was just in the wrong place at the right time and came between a mother otter and its young.

"I think the mother was just protecting what she thought was a threat to her babies," said Mr. Schlecht. "I've never heard of it before. It's probably one in a million."

According to an official from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, river otter attacks are unusual but not unheard of, especially during this time of year.

Earlier this month a woman was bitten on the hand by a river otter in Montana, the Helena Independent Record reports.

The Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks association issued a warning following the attack, posting a sign along the Madison River near West Yellowstone which read: "Danger. Vicious Otter. Recent Attacks. Use Caution in and around the water."

The Independent Record reports the woman suffered "significant bites to her hand." There was also an unconfirmed report of an angler being attacked by an otter that same evening.