OCALA, Fla. – The Sumter County Sheriff's Office said an alligator attacked a 58-year-old man Tuesday on County Road 311 in Bushnell after the man's father shot the gator twice for terrorizing his livestock.
[Scroll below for 911 call, gator map ]
Deputies said Jackie Hildreth's father called for help at 6:30 p.m. when the gator attacked his son.
When officers arrived, they said they found Hildreth with a large bite on his right upper thigh and lower right calf, lying on the ground about 12 to 15 feet from the gator.
Hildreth's father says the alligator was bothering his horses, so he shot the gator twice with a handgun. But the gator didn't die and attacked Hildreth, who was standing nearby.
The alligator was euthanized by a Florida Wildlife Commission gator trapper. Officials said the gator was 8 feet 8 inches long and weighed about 300 pounds.
Hildreth was airlifted to Ocala Regional Medical Center, where he is now in stable condition.
[WARNING, content may be graphic]