Volunteer stole alligator egg or hatchling and raised it for 20 years, Texas zoo says

Sometime more than 20 years ago, an animal volunteer stuffed an alligator egg or hatchling into her pocket, then walked off with it to raise as a pet, according to a Texas zoo.

She kept that alligator for over two decades, until she was recently caught with it living illegally in her backyard, KSAT reported, citing wildlife officials. It measured 7 feet long.

“It was very friendly with her,” Game Warden Joann Garza told the Texas TV station, adding that the woman described the large gator as her pet.

But she didn’t have the permits required to keep a live alligator at her home, and she was unable to meet the requirements necessary to obtain those permits, a representative of Animal World & Snake Farm Zoo said in a video shared to Facebook on March 3.

“Alligators don’t make good pets, y’all,” Texas Parks and Wildlife said after removing the alligator from her home in Caldwell County, according to KHOU.

As the “rightful owners” of the stolen alligator, Animal World & Snake Farm Zoo said state wildlife officials called staff members to see if they could take in the alligator.

Zoo staff headed to the woman’s home about 50 miles away from their facility in New Braunfels to help capture the large reptile and bring her in, according to the video. Employees introduced her to the other alligators at the zoo, “where she’s going to live out the rest of her life.”

The woman faces up to $1,000 in fines connected to illegally owning an alligator, KSAT reported.