An Army veteran from Florida just showed the world that nothing gets between him and his dog when he managed to fight off a 13-foot alligator with his bare hands after the animal attacked his beloved canine.

Trent Tweddale was out taking his 6 year-old dog Loki for a walk last week near his farm in Wesley Chapel, Pasco County. Loki was enjoying the leisurely walk and “had his front paws in the river” when suddenly, all hell broke loose.

Out of nowhere, a massive 13-foot gator grabbed onto Loki’s paws and began pulling the dog underwater. Many people would have been too scared to intervene, but Tweddale, a former Army staff sergeant, was not about to let the gator take his best friend away from him.

“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.”

Tweddale managed to walk away with just some minor scratches, but Loki was not so lucky. The dog’s front leg was almost completely severed, and he required immediate emergency surgery.

“When I pulled him back up, the bones were out and it looks like the arm was just hanging by a shred,” said Tweddale. “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.”

With his dog safe, the veteran now wants revenge on the gator who did this, and to make sure that the animal can’t attack anyone else. Determined to catch the reptile, Tweddale has teamed up with the Florida Fish and Wildlife service to set a trap.

“The trapper did not have any bait, so I grabbed one of my roosters and we used him as bait for the trap,” the veteran said. “We haven’t had any luck yet. We love our dog a lot and I’d fight tooth and nail for him.”