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Giant Gator

By Debbie Williams Reporter

Published: Thu, September 13, 2007 - 5:09 pm Last Updated: Thu, September 13, 2007 - 5:38 pm

Short URL: http://wkrg.com/a/5156/

Debbie Williams

It may be the biggest alligator you will ever see and now it calls Summerdale, AL home. But getting the huge reptile there was almost as amazing as its size.
His size alone will scare you and then when he does the whole gator hiss and starts thrashing about, it's enough to make you run the other way. But not eight guys at Alligator Alley including owner, Wes Moore. "It would be criminal to destroy an animal of this magnitude."
So how do you move a giant alligator into his new home? "Slow and easy is the key," says Moore.
The gator is an import from Florida where Mike Hunter and Tina Grim caught him after getting a nuisance call. "We started pulling him up and there was nothing but teeth," says Grim. He had been hanging out around some boat docks where a lot of people swim. "We knew he was big didn't know he was that big," says Hunter.
After taping and tying, lifting and loading, they wheel him to his new digs. Tipping the scales at almost 800 pounds that's no easy job. The new gator is neighbors with the other resident 13 footer, Captain Crunch. An alligator Mike Hunter knows well, "Crunch was one of the first to come here. He was an alligator my Dad caught. It means a lot to have here with wes and my dads Gator is pretty cool."
His name is "Big T" and at 13 feet eight inches he may just be the largest wild caught alligator in captivity.
"You've got an animal that is 40 plus years old he didn't do anything wrong other than be an alligator," says Moore.
He is now safe, secure and will probably outlive us all.
"Big-T" will get a couple weeks rest in his new surroundings and then you can see him for yourself at Alligator Alley in Summerdale.