ST PETERSBURG TIMES (Florida) 26 June 04 Alligator advocates decide to petition- Neighbors of a Veterans Village man are trying to save the alligator that killed his dog. (Richard Raeke)
New Port Richey: On Tuesday, Bill Baird found his dog Krissy floating in the lake behind his home, the victim of an alligator attack. By Thursday he had a new puppy.
"It takes the sting out," he said Friday from his couch as the puppy napped against his leg in his Veterans Village home. "But she's not going to replace Krissy."
Like Krissy, Angel is a black Labrador retriever mix with a spot of white on her chest. A Spring Hill couple gave the 6-week-old puppy to Baird after hearing of the gator attack.
While a trapper still searches for the alligator, some neighbors have united to save it.
Alex Horattas, as president of the Lake George Association, is angry that the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has issued a permit to catch and kill the 10-foot alligator. The reptile has lived peacefully in the lake for years without incident, Horattas said. Residents should try to co-exist with it, he said, not kill it.
"They need to be aware of those alligators as responsible pet owners," Horattas said. Residents need to understand alligator behavior and preventative measures, such as building fences, he said.
To educate the neighbors, Horattas has enlisted the help of three friends; John and Cyn Frantz and Majd Dik. "If we use our heads, we can co-exist with these animals," said John Frantz.
The four are planning a petition to stop the alligator from being trapped and killed. If the petition drive proves fruitful, Horattas hopes to have a judge issue an injunction against the trapper's permit next week.
They describe the alligator as docile and nonaggressive. It attacked, they say, because it felt threatened by the 9-month-old dog intruding on its space, not out of blood lust. As evidence, Horattas pointed to the fact that the alligator did not eat the dog. And to the dog's wounds, which were on its chest, neck and foreleg.
"That dog did not get bit in the rear end trying to escape," he said.
Baird dismissed the petition, saying, "Well, let them see how they feel after they lose a pet or a child."
He now plans to build a fence behind his Veterans Village home to protect Angel.
But to Horattas, "That's kind of like closing the gate after the horse got out."
Cyn Frantz believes it's too late to convince the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to call off the alligator hunt.
"It's a situation that did not have to happen," she said. "But if we can't save this one, at least we can get the education out."
Neighbors of a Veterans Village man are trying to save the alligator that killed his dog.