American alligators have traditionally been found in their natural habitat only in the southeast United States: all of Florida and Louisiana; the southern parts of Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi; coastal South and North Carolina; East Texas, the southeast corner of Oklahoma, and the southern tip of Arkansas.
However, growing interest in owning the slippery reptiles as pets has seen them popping up in recent years in increasingly unexpected places.
Only last year, for instance, there were gator sightings in Chicago, New York and Connecticut.
Nonetheless, it is fair to say that police in Groveport, Ohio were astonished when they were summoned to deal with a rather unusual inhabitant living in the basement of a private home, according to local station NBC4i.
A 25-year-old American alligator was discovered and removed late last week from the house.
Patrol Commander, Darrel Breneman, who responded to the call said: “I’ve been a police officer 17-years, and I’ve never come across an alligator.”
Breneman said he got a call from paramedics saying they had just responded to a home and could not believe what they saw in the basement.
The 5-foot-long alligator was living in a tub-like structure with some water and a sump pump. The alligator’s owner wasn’t there when police arrived, but the homeowner said the alligator was with his owner his whole life.
“I imagine they were pretty attached to it, being around that long,” Breneman said.
However, because the owner did not have an exotic animal permit, the animal will now be taken to a more suitable environment, an alligator sanctuary in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
“They kind of grow to the size of the enclosure that they’re in, so he’s not reached his full potential, and I think it’s pretty exciting to know that he’s going to an alligator sanctuary in a warmer climate where he can reach his full potential and experience that,” Breneman said.
Veterinarians found no signs of abuse and consider the animal to be in average health for an alligator who has lived in captivity.
Neither police nor the Department of Agriculture will pursue charges against the owner.