Abandoned alligators are on the rise in central Pennsylvania
An alligator sits in the swamp area at Alligator Alley in Summerdale, Ala. Visitors to the park can buy gator biscuits to feed to resident alligators.
It may be quite different than having a dog or cat — for instance you can’t really pet these animals — but for about $50 apiece, people can get their hands on their very own pet alligator in Pennsylvania.
Now, compared to the thousands of dollars people sometimes pay for other pets, this seems like the cheaper option for those seeking companionship from animals.
However, not everyone thinks this is the best idea, especially for the alligators.
Central Pennsylvania is seeing a rise in the number of abandoned alligators, and this is believed to be in large part caused by the reptile’s recent popularity as a pet.
“People take the pet they got a couple years ago, they realize it’s getting too big, and they just let it go,” said Jesse Rothacker, founder of the Forgotten Friend Reptile Sanctuary.
This summer, wildlife experts and residents have found more and more abandoned alligators in the state. And working at the sanctuary, Rothacker said he often gets calls asking for him to come “bail the alligators out of jail,” at least once a week.
He will have at least three alligators to deliver on his next trip to a refuge in Tampa, Florida — one of them being the gator that was found in Lancaster County in July.
The gator was spotted roaming a Lancaster County neighborhood, captured by East Calico Township Police and handed over to the Forgotten Friend Reptile Sanctuary in Manheim.
Rothacker has been asking state legislators for years to outlaw the buying and selling of alligators as pets but hasn’t been successful in this endeavor.
“I’m told that the problem takes care of itself every winter,” Rothacker said.
Gators are cold blooded, requiring a warm climate. So while July and August may be fine, a gator in the wild would never survive a Pennsylvania winter.
“New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Ohio all have laws banning the purchase of alligators pets,” Rothacker said. “But Pennsylvania is one of the only states in the country where we have no laws, no background checks, no micro-chipping, no permits — no anything — preventing someone with about $50 from bringing home a pet alligator.”
At this point, it’s animal cruelty, Rothacker said.
“If somebody were to take their pet dog and release it somewhere in the wild or in the middle of the lake and drive off, they would certainly be charged with animal cruelty,” Rothacker said. “So why isn’t the same for alligators, the animals that could eat your pet dog for breakfast?”
This story comes to us through a partnership between WITF and The York Daily Record.
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