This guy has been moving around ponds in the area, it's mating season so male gators are on the move looking for mates. He's been on the list to capture for 3 weeks and finally showed up on a neighbors driveway. Measured 10ft 9 inches, probably close to 300 plus pounds.





Trapper roped him and spent a bit of time wrestling him around to wear him down after lassoing him around the neck tied him to the hitch on his F250.



Once he was tied up he could get on his back, cover the eyes and tape its mouth shut.



Finally got him into the back of the truck, too long for the bed, had to curl the tail up to close the tailgate.



Video of trapper at work

Michael Landry says, choot it.

So what happens to the gator now that its been captured? Do they transport it to some remote location and free it or put it down? Hoping they choose option 1.

That is one big gator, any missing small dogs in the neighborhood?

If I wake up to an 11 foot gator on my driveway. By God if that’s where he wants to be more power to him. I’ll be locked in my house.

I can totally see me opening the garage, seeing this sucker, coffee in hand and just calmly saying to myself “nope, nope, nope” closing the garage and going back inside for a nice pleasant day at the casa.

Beautiful, healthy looking specimen he is. I'm guessing they take him out into the Glades and cut him loose where he can take his chances with a Python that is 2 or 3 feet longer than him.

quote:

Originally posted by lastmanstanding:
Beautiful, healthy looking specimen he is.

Yeah, that is a BEAUTIFUL animal.

I would probably think differently, though, if that were my driveway. . .

'Gator wrangling is one of those things I "know" I could do, though I have no training or experience (like landing the plane after the pilot(s) have a heart attack, defusing a nuclear bomb, etc.). I mean, how hard can it be?

7 feet and less they get relocated, he's aggressive and been living around humans
sat there 45 minutes while we waited for the trapper so he's probably been fed by some transplant from up north thinking it's cool.

So he's on his way to be made into belts, boots and dinner for the homeless...

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
7 feet and less they get relocated, he's aggressive and been living around humans
sat there 45 minutes while we waited for the trapper so he's probably been fed by some transplant from up north thinking it's cool.

So he's on his way to be made into belts, boots and dinner for the homeless...

Yep, nuisance gators can't be rehabilitated, end up in Cajun cuisine.

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
7 feet and less they get relocated, he's aggressive and been living around humans
sat there 45 minutes while we waited for the trapper so he's probably been fed by some transplant from up north thinking it's cool.

So he's on his way to be made into belts, boots and dinner for the homeless...

That's a damn shame. More people need to be put down than animals. Same thing when people wander into bear territory unprepared and get mauled by mama bear protecting her cubs. Mama bear gets dispatched along with the cubs. My bet would be they could cut that gator loose out in the glades and he'd never find his way back to suburbia or would want to.

quote:

Originally posted by Hound Dog:

quote:

Originally posted by lastmanstanding:
Beautiful, healthy looking specimen he is.

Yeah, that is a BEAUTIFUL animal.

I would probably think differently, though, if that were my driveway. . .

'Gator wrangling is one of those things I "know" I could do, though I have no training or experience (like landing the plane after the pilot(s) have a heart attack, defusing a nuclear bomb, etc.). I mean, how hard can it be?

Capturing gators was required training at the police academy in Florida years ago before they started issuing trapping licenses.

We were recruiting experienced officers heavily. I was interviewing applicants from up north who wanted to know what parts of the comparative compliance academy they would have to attend. Oh, you have to take Florida law, firearms, pursuit driving, and alligator capture. Some did not believe me right up to the point when the game warden pulled up with a gator in his truck, dragged it out, and says, "there he is boys, get him"..Some of those guys moved back to Michigan and Ohio....

That is a pretty big gator.

quote:

We were recruiting experienced officers heavily. I was interviewing applicants from up north who wanted to know what parts of the comparative compliance academy they would have to attend. Oh, you have to take Florida law, firearms, pursuit driving, and alligator capture.

Apparently I would have been combining firearms and gator capture curriculums into a single course.

Some friends, a married couple, just moved to Houston for job relocation. They had to wait while their brand new house was being finished.

They posted pics on facebook the other day of an alligator in their driveway, just behind some cars.

It was captured and relocated, they were told it was a very pregnant female ready to download the brood.

Needless to say they were totally freaked out seeing a gator in their new driveway.
.

quote:

Originally posted by lastmanstanding:
That's a damn shame. More people need to be put down than animals. Same thing when people wander into bear territory unprepared and get mauled by mama bear protecting her cubs. Mama bear gets dispatched along with the cubs. My bet would be they could cut that gator loose out in the glades and he'd never find his way back to suburbia or would want to.

It is considering how long he's been around, but then again, some choices have dire consequences. He left the big lake, travelled up a creek to the ponds here, found a food source and little competition became content to stay among the homes.

Two years ago an 11 foot gator took a neighbors Golden right out of the back yard, 120 pound dog didn't stand a chance, drug it out into the lake. No fear of coming up to houses, once that happens it's time to turn them into Boots n Burgers that one was kilt on sight...

A similarly sized gator was captured a few years ago about a mile from my mother's house in Louisiana. Up to ten feet they are relocated; larger than that then it's BBQ and handbags.

quote:

Originally posted by lastmanstanding:
cut that gator loose out in the glades and he'd never find his way back to suburbia or would want to.

You could give him a map.....

lastmanstanding, we're up to our ass in alligators.

They taste like chicken.

http://www.twisterairboatrides.com/fishcamp.html

Gator is actually pretty good. It does sort of a chicken taste but much chewier. It’s Good Fried.