Alligator mysteriously turns up in Georgia family’s fenced-in backyard, photos show

Caption

A family living in eastern Georgia found this alligator hiding in their fenced-in backyard. It’s unclear how it got there.

Credit: Facebook

Alligators basically go wherever they want. But a Georgia family is mystified as to how one got into their home’s fenced-in backyard.

The frightening discovery was made Friday, March 15, at a home on St. Simons Island, about an 80-mile drive south from Savannah.

“Our dogs alerted (us) as he was sunning in the grass. My husband quickly got them inside and we kept our eye on the gator until (a police officer) saved the day,” Mary Ann Williams Ellis wrote in a Facebook post.

“We have always just let our dogs out to run and not worry about a thing…We will now!”

Officer Kevin Jones with the Glynn County Police Department responded to the yard and “wrangled” the alligator himself, she noted.

Photos show Jones ended up on the alligator’s back, riding it like a horse. The reptile’s mouth was taped shut and its limbs were tied behind its back to render it harmless. The scaly intruder was then loaded into the back of a pickup truck.

“The gator will be safely released to a gator haven on the island that is far more welcoming!” police wrote.

Alligators are native to eastern Georgia, but Ellis said that still doesn’t explain how one ended up in a subdivision behind her family’s pool equipment. Ellis said her family is “still scratching (their) heads” as the search for an explanation continues.

“We haven’t found an access point… Absolute craziness!” she wrote. “We have no idea how he got inside our fence. I’m learning that they can climb a fence …. But why.”

Alligators do climb fences, but there is often evidence of the access point. They also force their way through metal fences, leaving a giant hole in their wake.

It’s their motive that remains a mystery. Pursuit of food, water or just a general desire to be on the other side of the fence are possible goals.

The family’s home is not near a river or large bodies of water, but does have a runoff retention pond nearby.

Ellis said she feels they got lucky, because their two dogs, named Shelby and Sadie, aren’t always accompanied on backyard outings. In this case, her husband was there to witness Shelby barking at something in the grass.

He then saw an alligator hissing at the dog, she said.

“They are very prey driven dogs … This story could have had a completely different ending,” Ellis said. “We are thankful our dogs and us humans are safe!”

This story comes to GPB through a reporting partnership with The Telegraph.