Florida Police Officer Wrangles Alligator From Local Pool, Buckles It Up In The Backseat To Relocate

The combination of intense heat waves and high humidity in southern Florida makes having a pool feel totally worth the price. While there is maintenance required to upkeeping one, pools aren’t usually a huge chore to take care of. That is, unless you have a gator problem….

In a video captured by a St. John County Sheriff’s bodycam, a gator is seen sunbathing in a pool before an officer reaches in to grab it.

@nbcsouthflorida Florida officer removes alligator from pool with bare hands, buckles it in patrol car. #FloridaGrit #GatorWrangler #DeputyRichardson #AlligatorRescue #FloridaLife #OnlyInFlorida ♬ original sound – NBCSouthFlorida

I’m guessing the homeowners saw the reptile making good use of their patio and called for some assistance. Pest control might have been the safer bet, but hey— the police department works too.

Now, I’m from Florida, and it’s not uncommon to have lakes or reserves near your property that provide perfect living conditions to gators. Because of this, sometimes these big guys wander too far from home and end up in the wrong body of water— that being somebody’s swimming pool. Pretty much anybody from the sunshine state has probably either had a gator in their pool or heard that it had happened to a neighbor at some point in their residence.

The clip shows the officer reaching down into the water and grabbing the gator by its neck before successfully lifting out of the pool. This peaceful interaction doesn’t last for long, though. The gator starts violently jerking around, leading the officer to accidentally dropping it back on the pool deck. No worries, though. Shortly after he was able to re-restrain the small gator with ease. He even gently reassures the animals with some quiet remarks.

“I got you, you’re fine. I know, you’re super mad.”

To be fair, I would be mad too if I was enjoying some refreshing water on a hot day and a random stranger grabbed me and pulled me out of it. Maybe we need a community pool exclusively for gators, perhaps he was feeling left out of the backyard pool club.

With gator in hands, the officer then proceeds to bring the reptile back to his vehicle and strap it into the backseat, of course not neglecting to use the seat belt! It’s always important to drive safe, even under unconditional circumstances.

The footage also includes some funny interactions between the officer and the homeowners. After successfully capturing the animal with his bare hands, the residents praise the gator wrangler for his skills.

“You go! Wow. Obviously, you grew up here.”

“Well, I’ll load him up in the back of my car, and I’ll take him to a pond that doesn’t have any residential area.”

“Thank you very much.”

“Florida Grown at its finest!”

He definitely seemed like a pro at handling alligators. Maybe all Floridians should take a “How to Evict a Gator From Your Property” class before becoming a permanent resident. Regardless, I guess we know we can rely on this guy to come help!The post Florida Police Officer Wrangles Alligator From Local Pool, Buckles It Up In The Backseat To Relocate first appeared on Whiskey Riff.