BIRMINGHAM NEWS (Alabama) 11 June 05 Alligator bites assistant zoo chief on leg (Walter Bryant)
Jeff Cook's help in restraining a Birmingham Zoo alligator for examination Friday sent him into surgery for treatment of a compound leg fracture and cuts, results of a bite by the 9-foot gator.
Cook, the zoo's assistant director and reptile expert, was kneeling in front of the alligator and holding his hand on its head to keep its jaws shut, said Dr. William Foster, the zoo's director. Other staff prepared to further restrain the animal, and a towel covered the alligator's eyes so it couldn't see what was going on.
Suddenly the alligator raised up on its front legs, Cook lost control of its head, and the gator made a lunging bite into Cook's right calf, Foster said. The reptile immediately let go, and Cook stood up and stepped back. "It was over like that," Foster said, snapping his fingers.
The incident happened at 10:05 a.m. inside a 24-foot-square pen in the zoo's veterinary clinic. Staff members took Cook out of the pen, administered first aid and called paramedics. Cook was taken to UAB Hospital, and was listed in good condition after the surgery.
Foster said he believed that all handling and safety protocol had been followed. He said staff discuss and plan medical procedures in great detail before approaching any animal.
"Jeff has the most experience and has a long history of reptile husbandry," Foster said.
The alligator exhibit, known as Gator Swamp, was dedicated in Cook's honor last year in recognition of his knowledge about the reptiles.
Noles said no one on the zoo staff can recall an employee getting bitten while on duty.
Alligator bites assistant zoo chief on leg