Ohio police shot a zebra after it mauled a 72-year-old man. The victim said 'I think he tore my arm off.'

• A zebra nearly tore off a man's arm on Sunday at a private residence in Ohio, according to reports.
• When deputies arrived at the scene, an aggressive male zebra charged into their car.

Ohio deputies shot and killed a zebra on Sunday after it nearly tore a man's arm off, according to reports.

Deputies with Pickaway County Sheriff's Office responded to a report of a zebra attack at a private home in Circleville, Ohio, on Sunday evening.

Ronald Clifton, 72, told dispatchers that he was attacked by a zebra, and requested that a rescue team be dispatched immediately, per the New York Post.

The newspaper reported the dispatcher was in disbelief and asked Clifton to confirm that they had heard him correctly.

"I think he tore my arm off…send a chopper," Clifton said on the call, according to the Post.

Clifton was lying on the ground and his arm was bleeding below the elbow when deputies arrived, ABC News affiliate WSYX reported.

One deputy tried to position a police cruiser between Clifton and the animals, but a large and aggressive male zebra charged into the driver-side door, per the Post.

Deputies tried to get the zebra to back off by blaring police sirens, blowing air horns, and yelling at the animal, according to The Columbus Dispatch.

Bodycam footage shows a man attempting to chase the zebra away with a large stick.

But the animal continued to charge at deputies and members of the victim's family, The Dispatch reported.

The zebra was kept away for long enough for a deputy to apply a tourniquet below Clifton's shoulder and to walk him to an ambulance, according to reports.

The victim was then taken to a hospital. According to The Dispatch, initial reports suggested that the man's arm was torn off, but that doctors were able to reattach it.

Family members told WYSC that he will not lose his arm.

Deputies ultimately decided to put the animal down, according to the Post.

It appeared that the zebra was trying to protect several female zebras in the same field, the sheriff's office said, per The Dispatch. The animals appeared to be privately owned.

Zebras are not considered dangerous wild animals under Ohio state law, meaning that private owners do not need to register them with the state's Department of Agriculture.