Sulphur Man Receives 80 Stitches In Hand After Being Bitten By 11 ft. Alligator [VIDEO]

KPLC 7 News, Lake Charles, Louisiana

A Sulphur man is grateful to still have his hand after being bitten by an 11 ft. alligator while attempting to remove it from the middle of the road.    

Glen Bonin says he's always been the kind of guy to learn the hard way, and hopefully after this encounter he won't be messing with any wild gators any time soon.

A video that has gone viral shows Bonin and three friends trying to coax an 11 ft. alligator out of the road in Sulphur, LA. Their method was unorthodox, and the fact that they were even attempting to handle the wild animal was crazy in the first place.

We took our shirts off, threw it on his face, and we were going to come from behind it and jump on it... in the process of doing that, it spun around and grabbed my hand seconds before we jumped on it

In the video clip above, graphic footage shows Bonin being chomped at by the big gator, and immediately he appears to be stunned. Although it was only a split second, Bonin says he felt like "lasted forever" and felt like "someone was pulling his arm out."

Bonin says he has learned his lesson and is very lucky that he didn't lose his hand, or worse. With a bandaged hand (Warning: Photo below is graphic!) he told KPLC-TV that he hopes to be able to straighten out his ring finger and pinky finger through therapy.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries reminds you that if you come into contact with an alligator or any wildlife, do not try to handle it on your own.

Instead, contact local law enforcement or your local LDWF office.

[via KPLC-TV]