The deep reciprocal bond so often forged between pet and human is one of life’s heartwarming marvels.
It can make a dog throw itself, against all instinct, into the firing line – like Skyler in North Carolina, who heroically protected his owner during an armed robbery.
And, as shown in Florida this week, a profound attachment between species can also drive owners to risk life and limb to ensure the animals in their care come to no harm.
A man in Pasco County, on the state’s west central coast, just about managed to save his dog from a vicious alligator attack on Monday – and he now says he won’t rest until he’s caught the amphibious reptile.
Trent Tweddale and his 6-year-old pooch, Loki, were walking Monday morning by the river on their farm in Wesley Chapel when a 13-foot-long gator suddenly emerged, grabbing the terrified animal and pulling it into the water.
Tweddale, a former Army staff sergeant, immediately leapt into the water to save the rescue pup.
“I grabbed the dog’s collar to try to pull him back and I ended up in a tug of war match with this gator and the gator was not letting go,” he told WFLA. “So I let go of the collar and I got about knee-deep into the water and started pounding on the gator’s head until he eventually let go.”
While Tweddale was lucky enough to come off with only minor scratches, Loki needed emergency surgery after the ferocious reptile nearly severed his front leg.
“When I pulled him back up, the bones were out and it looks like the arm was just hanging by a shred,” Tweddale told the NBC-affiliated station. “They put metal plates and screws in and were able to reconstruct it that way. We’re hoping that he can regain full use of his paws after this.”
Tweddale is now so set on catching the menacing gator that he has enlisted the help of Florida Fish and Wildlife to lay a trap on his property to catch it.
“The trapper did not have any bait, so I grabbed one of my roosters and we used him as bait for the trap. We haven’t had any luck yet,” Tweddale said. “We love our dog a lot and I’d fight tooth and nail for him.”
