THE MERCURY (Pottstown, Pennsylvania) 20 August 05 Alligator crawls its way to Collegeville (Mike Castiglione)
Collegeville: Patrolling the streets of Collegeville early Sunday morning, a state trooper was on the lookout for the usual late-night elements -- suspicious persons, traffic violations, 4-foot alligators crossing the street.
For Trooper Jason Hannings, it was just another night on the streets until an alligator believed to be 3- to 4-foot-long ran across Ridge Pike onto the property of Wes Jackson Auto on the 1800 block of Ridge Pike.
Because alligators are not a common member of the wildlife in Montgomery County, state troopers were forced to develop a makeshift plan to capture the alligator and keep unsuspecting residents out of harm’s way. After all, who else were they going to call at 3 a.m. on a weekend?
Without wasting time, the troopers made use of their standard-issue alligator catcher -- known as a trash can to the layman -- and were able to capture the unwelcome visitor.
Police made contact with an official from the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, who agreed to pick up the alligator at noon. In the meantime, the alligator was taken to the Upper Providence Police Department dog pound to await the arrival of the fish and game representative.
Although officials did not know exactly how the alligator got there, Fish and Game Commission spokesperson Dan Tredinnick offered some input.
"It’s actually not all that uncommon for us to respond to calls like these where people will dump things that used to be a pet," Tredinnick said.
Tredinnick said Cayman alligators are commonly sold in the pet trade as baby alligators. It is illegal to sell them and anyone caught dumping one in a public domain is subject to a $100 base fine for introducing such an animal into the commonwealth, Tredinnick said.
"It’s usually a case where somebody thinks it can make a cool pet, but they get sick of it after a while," Tredinnick said. "Finding these things are like finding litter on the side of the road. By the time you get to it, the culprit is usually long gone."
Alligators are cold-blooded animals intended for living in tropical regions, which is why they commonly make their home just a bit south of Montgomery County in places like Central America and South America. There is no self-sustaining breeding population in this area, Tredinnick said.
"They’re not really meant to be a domestic pet," Tredinnick said. "Alligators have a wild tendency. If released in an environment like this particular one was found in, they will rarely last in the wild for very long and will usually freeze to death come winter time."
Of course, sizable alligators roaming around in residential neighborhoods do pose a concern for the well-being of residents.
"Yes, it is a bit of a public safety hazard," Tredinnick said. "Depending on the size of them, they can pack a little bit of power. These are wild animals."
Phone calls placed to several area pet stores revealed that alligators, because they are illegal, are not sold. Cayman alligators, which can grow to about seven feet, are commonly sold at reptile shows, according to the pet stores.
"Someone probably bought this one and it grew a little big and they didn’t have the heart to do anything else with it so they just let it go," Tredinnick said. "That’s my educated hunch. It certainly didn’t hike up here from down south."
After the fish and game commission responds to calls for alligators, it usually finds a zoo for them or releases them to a wildlife rehabilitator, Tredinnick said.
Alligator crawls its way to Collegeville