DEC: Hudson Valley Family Illegally Kept Alligators as Pets

A Hudson Valley family allegedly admitted they were illegally keeping two large alligators as pets.

On August 14, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation office received a call from a Hudson Valley wildlife rehabilitator reporting that a woman from the town of Mamakating contacted her because she wanted to turn over two alligators that she and her son had been raising as pets.

The rehabilitator met with the woman at her Sullivan County home and collected the two alligators. Each were about three to four feet in length, according to the DEC.

Officers went to the Sullivan County home and talked with the woman about the alligators. The woman said she had caught one while fishing in Florida two years ago and her son purchased the other gator online from an unknown source, officials say.

The unnamed mother and son added they wanted to give the alligators away because they were getting too big and difficult to take care of, the DEC reports.

Both were issued tickets for illegal possession of live crocodile. The rehabilitator is currently searching for a good home for the animals, possibly a zoo or education center.