Man Says He’s Lucky To Be Alive After A Horny Dolphin Attacked Him While He Was Swimming

Keep your head on a swivel if you’re heading into the water off the coast of Tsuruga in Japan. Not only for sharks, but for dolphins as well. One dolphin in particular, who likes to get touchy-feely with swimmers.

The horny dolphin in question calls the area home and has been described as “sexually frustrated” and looking for some companionship. He apparently likes it rough too, and is unaware of the success stories of more gentle approaches.

A sexually frustrated dolphin in Japan – not pictured – has attacked several people in a quest for alternative companionship. (Image Credit: Getty)

Takuma Goto and his friend had an up-close and personal encounter with the dolphin while swimming in the water over the summer. Video from the incident shows the moment he caught the dolphin’s eye and had the dolphin approach him in a far too aggressive manner for a positive outcome.

Goto tried to swim away from the horny dolphin while others looked on. A swimmer even tossed a paddle board toward him in an attempt to help him get away from the dolphin believed to be behind more than a dozen similar attacks on swimmers this past summer.

That’s up from just five run-ins with dolphins the prior summer. Goto, who considers himself lucky to be alive, says he was swimming at Crystal Beach when the horned-up dolphin first attacked his friend.

He says it then lifted its head out of the water and music started playing – I might have added that part. Music or not, the dolphin turned its attention on him. The 23-year-old said, reports the news.com.au, “I knew it was not a shark, but it came straight at me.”

He added, “It attacked me and bit me … it kept attacking me and I genuinely believed that I was going to die. I was most worried that I was going to be dragged under the water and further out to sea.”

This sexually frustrated dolphin isn’t great at making new friends

The dolphin’s bizarre way of breaking the ice left Goto with a few injuries. After being helped to the shore by a surfer, he realized that his finger had been sliced open, and he had been bitten on his left wrist, forearm, and on his right hand and upper arm.

He needed five stitches for what he described as, “The insides of my finger were popping out.” he said, adding the injury resulted in five stitches, as well as a bite to his left wrist and forearm and his right hand and upper arm.

Biologist Dr. Simon Allen told the BBC that he believes a single male dolphin who has likely been kicked out of his pod is responsible for the multiple attacks. The dolphin is “seeking alternative companionship.”

This dolphin should probably consider a different approach. How many times does he need to swing and miss before he gets the hint? Biting isn’t going to help achieve the alternative companionship he’s after.

“Just as in humans and other social animals, hormonal fluctuations, sexual frustration or the desire to dominate might drive the dolphin to injure the people it interacts with,” the doctor added. “Since they are such powerful animals, this can lead to serious injury in humans.”

Bottom line, be careful if you’re taking a swim off the coast of Tsuruga. There’s a sexually frustrated dolphin with poor people skills in the area.