I thought I was bitten by a dog – I was shocked to learn what it really was and am glad to be alive

A MAN says he’s lucky to be alive after a chunk of his leg was bitten off by what he thought was a dog.

The Florida man had been walking along a dark path near a hotel when he approached an unidentified animal.

GettyA man had to be hospitalized after he was bitten by what he thought was a dog[/caption]

“He stated the figure appeared to look like a dog with a long leash, which is why he wasn’t hesitant to move out of the way,” a spokesperson for the North Poirt Sheriff’s Office told Orlando Weekly.

However, the man had actually been interacting with an alligator that bit him in the right leg, “ripping off a chunk of his muscle,” said deputies.

The man was treated at Sarasota Memorial Hospital and the alligator was captured and removed from the area.

He fared better than a beloved grandmother who was attacked by a 10-foot gator last month, killing her.

FATAL ATTACK

Gloria Serge, 85, was killed while walking her dog through Spanish Lakes Fairways, a 55-plus community in Fort Pierce, Florida.

In newly released video, the grandmother can be seen taking in the beauty of the lake with her pup before disaster struck.

The dog quickly darted away after noticing the gator, and Gloria can be seen jumping as the beast nears her.

The alligator was lurking in a lake situated in the heart of the retirement community as Gloria walked her pooch, according to WPTV.

Neighbor Carole Thomas, 76, called 911 and watched in horror as the beast leaped out of the water and grabbed Gloria’s dog before she began to fight back.

The horrified witness told the 911 operator: “The alligator’s got her. An alligator has a woman.

“It’s a huge gator. It’s huge! He’s holding her in the lake.”

Carole witnessed the gator pull Gloria under the water, leaving her dog on the shore.

The caller said: “It’s too late. It’s too late.”

Carole tried in vain to help the grandmother escape the gator by holding out a pole for her to swim to, but then Gloria went completely under.

The neighbor was in shock: “Oh my god, I couldn’t do anything. I see her. She’s floating.”

GettyIt turns out, he was actually attacked by an alligator[/caption]