Can Alligators Get into My Yard?
Florida alligators will go where they please and are likely to inhabit any body of water in the state. In fact, the Sunshine State has become known nationally not just for its famous theme parks and beaches, but for the frequency with which wayward alligators find their way into yards, pools, and residential neighborhoods. Here are some ways that alligators can get into your yard.
Things That Attract Alligators to Your Yard
- Accessible swimming pools
- Readily-available sources of food
- Loose pets
- Overgrown vegetation
Ways to Repel Alligators from Your Yard
Make your property less inviting to alligators by:
- Installing a fence around your yard
- Keeping your pets and their food bowls and dishes inside your home
- Enclosing your pool with a screened-in area or fence
- Trimming-back vegetation that could act as shelter to a displaced gator
What to Do if an Alligator Gets in Your Yard
- Keep your distance – prevent human-alligator contact as much as possible.
- Never feed them – feeding an alligator makes it equate humans with food.
- Contact the authorities – Alert the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) of the presence of a nuisance alligator. The FWC qualifies an alligator as a legitimate nuisance if it is at least four feet in length and poses a threat to people, pets, or property. Their SNAP alligator management program contracts-out alligator trappers and provides a toll-free nuisance alligator hotline at 866-FWC-GATOR (866-392-4286).
While Critter Control® of Orlando is equipped to handle nuisance alligators, trapping or removing them requires permission from state agencies such as the FWC. If an alligator gets in your yard, call SNAP. For all your other pest removal solutions or to schedule a free inspection by professional wildlife removal specialists, call Critter Control® of Orlando today at 407-295-7194.