Alligator snaps up 50-pound dog walking along lake on college campus in Florida

A dog was snatched up by an alligator on the Venice campus of the State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

It happened around 7:45 p.m. on Wednesday, March 9, near the Lake Jervey Nature Path. The marshy lake is at the north end of the campus, and is surrounded by trails and parking lots.

Witnesses described the dog as a 50-pound pit bull, FWC spokesman Adam Brown told McClatchy News. The dog has not been recovered and is believed to be dead.

The owner, who was not identified, did not have the dog on a leash, officials said. No one else was injured in the incident.

State wildlife officials determined the alligator posed a threat, and sent a trapper to remove it. Two “nuisance alligators” were ultimately pulled from the lake: One 6 feet, 9 inches long, and the other 7 feet, 10 inches, Brown said.

Their fate was not immediately known, but trappers working at the behest of the state can keep the hide and meat of alligators they catch.

“Relocating nuisance alligators is not a feasible option for people or alligators. Relocated alligators nearly always try to return to their capture site,” Brown said.

“In the process of returning, they can create problems for people or other alligators along the way. If an alligator successfully returns, capturing it again would be necessary and usually more difficult the second time.”

Signs posted on the State College of Florida campus warn of alligators and snakes, and tell visitors “not to feed or disturb the alligators.”

Florida’s 67 counties are home to an estimated 1.3 million alligators, and “dogs and cats are similar in size to the natural prey of alligators,” the state says. Injuries involving people attacked by alligators are rare, the state says.

This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 9:00 AM with the headline "Alligator snaps up 50-pound dog walking along lake on college campus in Florida."