A teenager who was savaged by an alligator is on the road to recovery and even joking about his ordeal with friends and family - despite having his right arm ripped off. Kaleb Langdale had been swimming in the Caloosahatchee River in Moore Haven, Florida, when he was attacked by the 11ft beast on Monday afternoon. The 17-year-old thought he had swam away from the giant alligator, only for it to clamp on to his right arm - leaving the teenager with a choice of his life or his limb. Scroll down for video . Savaged: Kaleb Langdale, pictured before and after his ordeal with the alligator, lost his right arm after wrestling with the 11ft beast in Moore Haven, Florida . Now after swimming to safety without . part of his right arm, the brave teen has been recovering in hospital, . where he has been in good spirits since his death-defying ordeal. Brave Kaleb has even joked with his sister that now she 'won't be the only left-handed person in the family'. The alligator terror began on Monday afternoon when Kaleb's friends spotted the huge beast near him and shouted. Kaleb attempted to subdue the . alligator by grabbing under its bottom jaw - a move he had apparently . seen performed on TV - only to be dragged down by the creature. The . teenager surfaced and began to swim away when the alligator appeared . calmer, only for it to lunge at his arm as he threw it behind him while . swimming away. His sister Rebecca told news-press.com: . 'He knew he was losing (his arm), so he just took his feet, buried his . feet in the alligator’s head and just pushed so that he could get it . free,' Hayes said. She added, 'If it would have grabbed his body ... he would have drowned.' Fearsome: The alligator, pictured after it was caught and killed, clamped its jaws onto Kaleb's right arm while he was swimming in Moore Haven, Florida . Caught: The 11-foot alligator that attacked Kaleb is pulled from the water after it was killed . Swimming spot: The alligator was a known 'nuisance' and had been tagged for removal the day Mr Langdale was attacked . 'Once it popped loose, he just swam as hard and fast as he could to the dock, where some friends of his pulled him up.' After Kaleb was rushed to hospital, emergency services made a desperate attempt to hunt the beast and recover Kaleb's right arm. Unfortunately, despite finding the creature and killing it, the arm was in too bad a condition to be reattached to the teenager in hospital.
Kaleb Langdale had been swimming in Caloosahatchee River when he was attacked on Monday afternoon .
Teen faced drowning or savaging from alligator unless he lost arm .
A teenager who was savaged by an alligator is on the road to recovery and even joking about his ordeal with friends and family - despite having his right arm ripped off. Kaleb Langdale had been swimming in the Caloosahatchee River in Moore Haven, Florida, when he was attacked by the 11ft beast on Monday afternoon. The 17-year-old thought he had swam away from the giant alligator, only for it to clamp on to his right arm - leaving the teenager with a choice of his life or his limb. Scroll down for video . Savaged: Kaleb Langdale, pictured before and after his ordeal with the alligator, lost his right arm after wrestling with the 11ft beast in Moore Haven, Florida . Now after swimming to safety without . part of his right arm, the brave teen has been recovering in hospital, . where he has been in good spirits since his death-defying ordeal. Brave Kaleb has even joked with his sister that now she 'won't be the only left-handed person in the family'. The alligator terror began on Monday afternoon when Kaleb's friends spotted the huge beast near him and shouted. Kaleb attempted to subdue the . alligator by grabbing under its bottom jaw - a move he had apparently . seen performed on TV - only to be dragged down by the creature. The . teenager surfaced and began to swim away when the alligator appeared . calmer, only for it to lunge at his arm as he threw it behind him while . swimming away. His sister Rebecca told news-press.com: . 'He knew he was losing (his arm), so he just took his feet, buried his . feet in the alligator’s head and just pushed so that he could get it . free,' Hayes said. She added, 'If it would have grabbed his body ... he would have drowned.' Fearsome: The alligator, pictured after it was caught and killed, clamped its jaws onto Kaleb's right arm while he was swimming in Moore Haven, Florida . Caught: The 11-foot alligator that attacked Kaleb is pulled from the water after it was killed . Swimming spot: The alligator was a known 'nuisance' and had been tagged for removal the day Mr Langdale was attacked . 'Once it popped loose, he just swam as hard and fast as he could to the dock, where some friends of his pulled him up.' After Kaleb was rushed to hospital, emergency services made a desperate attempt to hunt the beast and recover Kaleb's right arm. Unfortunately, despite finding the creature and killing it, the arm was in too bad a condition to be reattached to the teenager in hospital.
his right arm ripped off. Kaleb Langdale had been swimming in the Caloosahatchee River in Moore Haven, Florida, when he was attacked by the 11ft beast on Monday afternoon. The 17-year-old