And before he could figure out what it was, it attacked his wife's sneakers. Turns out it was a beaver, animal control experts said, and in a rare move it attacked the couple.
When Souvannaphan kicked it, he said, the beaver bit him. He fell, grabbed the beaver, looked it in the face and punched it several times in the head with his left fist as it bit and held onto his leg.
The beaver eventually crawled away. Police in Fairfax County said the county's animal control division later responded to the incident.
For Souvannaphan, who works as a night supervisor at a local grocery store and occasionally goes camping and fishing, it was the first time he'd punched an animal.
He recalled the beaver attack Friday as he rested at his Fairfax home. He said he suffered fractures in his back, can't drive, and expects to have to stay out of work for two months.
The beaver attack started about 7 p.m. Sunday when he and his wife were out to get some exercise and headed to a path along Fairview Lake just off Lee Highway in Fairfax County. The couple had gotten back Saturday night from a honeymoon at Rehoboth Beach, Del., after their Sept. 9 wedding.
They parked their car and were about five minutes into their stroll when Souvannaphan said he "heard a noise" near a bush. He looked over and saw an animal, but couldn't quite figure out what it was.
"It started charging at us," he said, noting that it was about six feet away. "It looked big and black."
Souvannaphan said it grabbed the tip of his wife's sneakers. She screamed, he kicked it and then it "came after me."
That's when the struggle ensued — man vs. beaver, he said.
"I was fighting with this thing for quite a bit," said Souvannaphan, who stands 5-feet-11 and weighs about 190 pounds.
The beaver grabbed him by the pants but he got away. Then it "got me by the shoe," said Souvannaphan. He was wearing a pair of blue and white sneakers that he calls his "Walmart special."
"It pulled me," he said. "I lost control." He fell and hit his head.
His wife screamed for help, but no one was nearby. Souvannaphan said he kicked it again.
But "it seemed like it didn't want to let go," he said. He said he managed to scoot himself up slightly from the ground and he started to "punch it in the head."
"I couldn't get a good kick in with my other leg, so I started punching it," Souvannaphan said, recalling how the beaver was holding onto his left leg.
"That sucker wouldn't let go," he said. "I wasn't about to be his dinner."
Souvannaphan said that when he was on the ground, he realized it was a large beaver.
© David SouvannaphanThis photo of David Souvannaphan's hand shows cuts that resulted from the beaver attack.
He said he repeatedly punched the beaver in the eye area and face before it "finally let go" and crawled away.
His wife helped him up and he limped back to the car and headed to a nearby hospital. He spent three days in the hospital and got home Wednesday.
It isn't the first time someone has been attacked in the area by a beaver, although officials said such attacks are not typical in suburban Washington.
Katie Edwards, a wildlife management specialist with the Fairfax County Police Department, said beaver attacks are rare, but "by living in close proximity to wildlife, we do see unusual encounters with wildlife in the area."
The type of "unprovoked, aggressive behavior" that happened Sunday "could indicate a sick or rabid animal," she said, but it can't be confirmed because the beaver couldn't be tested.
There are two confirmed cases of rabid beaver attacks in Fairfax County in recent years. Edwards said she had no information on one of them, but the other happened four years ago, when an 83-year-old woman was seriously injured after a rabid beaver bit her as she was climbing out of Lake Barcroft in Fairfax County after a swim.
For Souvannaphan, he said he also suffered some "nicks to his knuckles." Because the beaver was not caught, it wasn't tested for rabies. As a precaution, Souvannaphan is undergoing treatment for rabies.
Souvannaphan said he has watched TV shows where someone gets attacked by a deer or a bear or even a bird. Animal control experts told Souvannaphan that the beaver may have been trying to protect a family of baby beavers that were nearby, although Souvannaphan said he and his wife were strictly on the path and never saw any other creatures.
"It's crazy," he said. "The last thing in my mind was being attacked by a damn beaver."
It seams all to oftan we hear of animals attacking people; we need to: A) look at the water supply near the areas of the animals. Test for chemicals, both Pharmaceutical and industry and water temp (could be an increase in certain bacteria that affects the brain). I would think if there is a problem and not found to be human related then the search needs to be expanded to include the surrounding land both above and below. Check out the surrounding fauna and flora. There is more to these incidents than a rabid beaver.
OR
Maybe they are turning the tides on us, the human species; after all we are animals. Thus meaning they are tired of our treatment towards them (superior) and our disregard for their home and place of buisness, so it is their turn to fight us off.