Posted by:
EricWI
at Tue Aug 24 20:59:18 2010 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by EricWI ]
Animal control officers in Brockton are trying to answer that riddle after a firefighter on his way to work Sunday morning found a 3-foot alligator, wearing a spiked collar and dragging a broken leash, lumbering across Clifton Avenue near Copeland Street.
“It’s not a call we deal with too often, thankfully,’’ Brockton animal control supervisor Tom DeChellis said. “It seems friendly, as far as alligators go.’’
Brockton Firefighter Scott Hurst said he was driving to work around 7 a.m. in the residential area when he saw the sharp-toothed reptile in the road near South Middle School.
Hurst jumped out of his truck, grabbed the animal, tied it down with a bungee cord, and called police, he said.
“I’ve never come across anything like that before,’’ said Hurst, who added he thought the green creature was an iguana until he got a closer look. “There’s a lot of kids in the neighborhood. I didn’t want anyone losing a finger.’’
A license is required in Massachusetts to keep exotic pets such as alligators, DeChellis said. It appears the alligator was tied up in someone’s backyard and escaped, he said.
DeChellis said he does not expect the owner to come forward, especially if the animal was being kept illegally.
A reptile specialist was expected to take custody of the alligator yesterday.
Brockton animal control officers have encountered alligators before, DeChellis said.
Alligators have occasionally been left behind in aquariums when the residents moved, and at least one was found in a pond at D.W. Field Park, he said.
www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/08/24/3_foot_alligator_caught_in_brockton/
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Oh No! They're also in MA! - EricWI, Tue Aug 24 20:59:18 2010