I recently took a camping vacation in a state park near the Wisconsin Dells with my two daughters. We are animal and nature lovers, and my youngest teenage daughter will be attending college for a degree in Wildlife Biology.
We visited places that had to do with nature and animals while in the Wisconsin Dells. One of the "attractions" we visited was a place called Alligator Alley. They boast of a large collection of live alligators which visitors can feed. Alligator Alley is a new attraction at the Wisconsin Dells, since March 2003. We thought this would be interesting and educational, but we were shocked at what we saw.
Before entering the "Alligator room", we were given a choice as to what type of food we wanted to give the alligators. I chose the chopped meat. They also had rats and mice available. Also in this room were many aquariums with animals for sale, including baby alligators and alligator snapping turtles.
When we entered the alligator room, we saw twenty live alligators of many sizes cramped into a 40'x10' aquarium. The water level was low, as to not allow for submersion of the animals. All of the alligators we observed had wounds and/or scars, some of them bleeding. One of the owners accompanied us into the room, but only to show us how to put the food through the feeding holes by pushing it into the tank with a stick, and then we were left alone with the alligators. To our horror, a group of teenage boys came in with a rat to feed to the alligators. Unfortunately, the rat was alive, and the boys catapulted it into the tank through the feeding hole with the stick. The poor rat plunged into the water and freaked out until one of the alligators devoured it alive. The boys giggled with sadistic delight. It was not a show for the squeamish, even though the place is touted as family entertainment. We also observed the larger alligators chasing the smaller ones around the tank until they were running over each other because of the cramped space.
The room was dark except for lights in the tank, and blacklights outside the tank where the visitors stood. On the walls of the room were plastic flowers, some of which we noted were now floating in the alligators' tank, put there by visitors through the feeding holes. There was no supervision in the room, so visitors could put anything into the feeding holes without the owners' knowledge. There was also loud dance music being played as though we were in a night club. We felt it was a circus atmosphere at the expense of these beautiful animals.
Just before we left in disgust, we watched one of the larger alligators bearing down as if to defecate. I'm no expert in what alligator excrement looks like, but the alligator proceeded to let loose a large amount of bright red blood from what we believed to be the anal area. Along with the blood were pieces of the chopped meat that had been fed to the alligators. We assumed it was defecating, but we were shocked by the amount of blood that came out of the animal along with the meat pieces which were still whole.
We left immediately, but I felt this attraction should be investigated. I have no idea who owns the place or if it's licensed. I find it hard to believe this type of entertainment is legal.
The web site for this attraction is; http://www.extremeworld.com/attractions/alligator_alley/
If you'll notice on the web site, they only show one of the larger alligators, they don't show the nineteen others all in the same tank!
My daughters and I are not faint of heart, we have often seen nature work in wondrous, and not so wondrous ways, but this was too much even for us. We were appalled.
I've already contacted the local Humane Society, but they directed me to the Humane Agent for Wisconsin, who told me there's nothing she can do, and she can't even investigate!
I've also complained to several animal rights organizations in Wisconsin. Does anyone here know of any organizations that deal specifically with Herps rights?
Thanks for any info.
