An animal handler who narrowly escaped being maimed by an alligator in full view of a children's birthday party says she "loves" the reptile and he should not be harmed as a result of the attack.
Footage circulated Monday showing an alligator clamping its jaws down on Lindsay Bull's arm in front of a group of horrified children celebrating a birthday at Scales & Tails in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Visitor Donnie Wiseman saved Lindsay by making a split-second decision to lay on top of the reptile, dubbed Darth Gator, to stop him performing the dreaded "death roll", which could have split her arm in two.
The notorious death roll happens when crocodiles and alligators bite their victims and spin in the water to rip them into chunks.
Lindsay, who underwent surgery to save her arm, says no harm should come to Darth as a result of the attack.
"We are going to fight as long as we can to keep him", she told Utah's Deseret News.
"As long as he is in our care and it is our choice, no consequences are going to happen to him. He was just doing what an animal does."
Lindsay said she had trained Darth for three years, and he now responds to commands, like letting her kiss him on the face.
"Oh, I love him. He is like a member of my family," she said. "That is true of everybody who works there. Everybody loves Darth."
It was Darth's feeding time, Lindsay said, and he mistook her hand for a lump of meat so he "grabbed it".
The owner of Scales & Tails, Shane Richins, confirmed Darth is "safe as long as we have him".
He was having a "bad day", he added.
Shane's alligator ownership permit is now under review and he hopes he'll be allowed to continue working with the reptiles.
Animal rights group Peta has started a petition, calling for Scales & Tails to be shut down after the "near fatality".
