Bring a pool float, and make it snappy!
A Florida family went out to investigate some “loud noises” at their Deep Creek home and discovered a nearly 11-foot alligator “taking a dip in their pool,” according to a Facebook post this week from the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office.
“Coming in at 10′11″ and weighing over 550lbs., he tore through the screen to get to the nice, cool water,” the sheriff’s office said, citing the situation as a reason to “always check your pool before diving in!”
A trapper was able to catch and relocate the alligator ― along with another 11-foot gator he had also just trapped ― to Muse, Florida, a town that Sgt. Brad Stender told CNN was “more conducive” to alligators.
During the spring and summer, alligators are on the move looking for mates and are more likely to end up closer to people’s homes, Stender said, adding that people should “keep their distance.”
“They’re not going to attack you as long as you don’t go up to them,” he said. “Most of the time they’ll go on their way.”
Of course, sometimes they get into a little trouble first. Last month, a Florida couple discovered that an alligator had gotten into their garage and gone to town on their soda supply.
“Diet Coke was spewing everywhere,” home resident Karen Dobson told the Miami Herald. “It tore open the box, had a few cans.”