Man's thumb ripped off by alligator during tourist demonstration gone wrong(Photos)

An alligator ripped a man's thumb off after it snapped at him during a tourist demonstration.

Two handlers were eagerly explaining how to correctly hold the reptile's head when the beast spun around and launched its attack.

The video, filmed in Colorado's Pike National Forest on August 6, shows the handlers trying to control the large reptile as the tourist sits on its back and nervously places his hands either side of its jaws.

But clearly agitated at being prodded and sat on, the alligator suddenly spins onto its back to escape their clutches.
The handler rushes to control the animal, but it latches onto the tourist's hand and crunches his teeth into his thumb.He was rushed to hospital where doctors managed to re-attach the digit.