A West Highland terrier is no match for an alligator. Thankfully for Doogie, a West Highland terrier in Palm City, Florida, his 72-year-old owner is. Gary Murphy, a retired construction worker, was working on a boat at the dock behind his house when a six-foot alligator grabbed Doogie in its jaws and pulled the poor dog into the water. Murphy jumped into the water and onto the alligator’s back (he was wearing loafers–a nice detail). Then he went to punching the alligator on the head until it let go of Doogie, slid under the boat, and swam away. ‘I wasn’t trying to be a hero,” Murphy said. “I just wanted my dog back.”
Doogie was treated for his injuries (a collapsed lung, a damaged liver, and some nasty teeth marks), and is resting comfortably at home. Here’s video from MSNBC.
Aaron Roughton
I’m afraid we’re in trouble. Gary has just thwarted natural selection. Little Doogie is now going to breed and create hordes of baby Doogies that are all too dumb to stay away from alligators. They’ll provide easy prey for the lurking beasts, who will teach their baby alligators that you don’t really have to try to catch prey anymore, you simply wait by this dock for the lemming dog parade and they drop right into your jaws. Then when they’ve exhausted their supplies of Doogies, the baby gators will turn on each other in frustration. And what we’ll end up with is some alligators dealing with some real complex emotional issues. And we don’t want that. Thanks for nothing Gary.
livingoakheart
Aaron Roughton, you are a horrible person who obviously hates dogs. You wouldn’t let yourself be eaten by an alligator, would you? Then how dare you consign an innocent canine to this horrible fate! You destroyer of ecology!