LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) -- A fishing guide and Lakeland City Commissioner saved a dog named Dixie from an alligator's jaws while cleaning up after Hurricane Irma.
Bill Read said his neighbor's dog got through some open gates and headed for the lake in his backyard on Tuesday.
The Tampa Bay Times reports Read saw a ripple, and then an alligator. The gator wrapped its jaws around the dog and rolled her underwater.
A few seconds later, the dog emerged and when Read saw the gator, he chucked a rock at the reptile, hitting it on its side.
It snapped at the rock and slowed, buying Dixie a few precious seconds. He hurled another brick at the gator as the dog swam to shore.
Dixie suffered two puncture wounds on her side, and scrapes.
