Ailing 750-pound alligator seized from NY home after gentle giant would swim with kids | 16 March 2024 | A Western New York community is rallying behind a man who kept an ailing 11-foot, 750-pound alligator in a pool inside his home -- where children were invited to swim with the gentle giant. The 34-year-old reptile was seized Wednesday from the Hamburg house, which was decked out with an in-ground swimming pool made to look like a pond. The homeowner "allegedly allowed members of the public to get into the water to pet the unsecured alligator," the state Department of Environmental Conservation said. The massive gator had numerous health-related issues, including blindness in both eyes and spinal complications when he was removed from the home, according to officials... The reptile-lover is already fighting back against the seizure of his beloved pet "Albert," who has been with him for 34 years. "As everyone has probably already heard The DEC and SPCA took Albert away from me saying that I put people in harm's way with him. Every one who has met Albert or knows Albert knows that this is not true," self-identified owner Tony Cavallaro wrote in an online petition. [Quick action - sign here.]