An alligator in your pond is as bad as it sounds. These invasive reptiles aren’t just pests; they’re apex predators.
Alligators can roam freely around your estate. If it happens to like what it sees in your pond, you’ll need to take some extra steps to prevent them from entering. This includes cleaning up clutter on your property, keeping the area free of food and installing fencing.
Stick around to learn more on how to keep alligators out of your pond as well as why alligators come into your pond in the first place.
Things You Should Know About Alligators
Before building up your defenses, it’s always a good idea to know your enemy. Here are a few facts you should know about alligators.
- They are most dangerous in the water. While this may seem like a no-brainer, it’s still crucial to know if you’re trying to get it out of your pond.
- Alligators can jump towards the shoreline to catch unsuspecting prey, however, they wouldn’t pursue them on land. In other words, don’t try to bait it out of your pond.
- They got teeth, a lot of them. Alligators can grow up to 3000 teeth in their lifetime. They usually carry 80. Since they’re not exactly nibblers when it comes to feeding time, these gators tend to lose a lot of teeth.
- Alligators aren’t instinctively aggressive towards us. They don’t want to fight. You just need to be careful of where you are in their territory. If they feel a threat, like any other predator, they’ll attack. It’s a basic animal instinct.
Why Do Alligators Come To Your Pond
To fully understand how alligators get in your pond, you should ask why they would bother getting in the first place.
- Alligators don’t have a specific taste for a body of water. They can come into your pool and pond and wouldn’t notice much of a difference from its natural swamp habitat.
- What’s worse is that these leathered creatures don’t distinguish their prey as well. Your beloved pet could be the same to the alligator as a wandering possum.
- The number of alligators hasn’t exactly seen a slump. Over one million alligators are occupying Florida alone. With so many living in our swamps and waterways, it shouldn’t be a surprise if one finds its way to your pond.
- What’s even more mind-boggling is that researchers are theorizing that present alligators are returning to their prehistoric habitat. This means that they’re re-colonizing their former environment from us humans.
That being said, here are some helpful and safe preventative measures to ward off the alligators from your pond.
How to Keep Alligators From Coming Near Your Pond
These steps might be just what you need to have a gator-free zone in your pond.
Step 1: Build a Barrier Around Your Estate
This is probably the most obvious step. If you don’t want alligators to come in, all it can take is a well-built fence.
But of course, they didn’t earn their title as an apex predator for nothing. Some alligators can climb up your fence. They can also dig out your fence and weaken its foundation.
Yes, you read that right. What can be done about it? Well, it’s all about the installation process. You’ll need to tuck that fence in at least 2 ft deep. For extra protection, you can incorporate concrete footers.
To avoid a climbing alligator situation, you can install a 5ft fence. Make sure that the top of the fence is bent outwards. You can also add barbed wire up there.
Types of Fences to Use
You can use all sorts of fences, such as a chain link, wood, aluminum, or concrete fence. If you’re looking for more protection, you can opt for an electric fence.
Electric fences are much easier to fixate and wouldn’t cause too much harm to anyone touching them. The fence usually carries one strand a few inches above the ground. Any incoming alligator will make contact with it.
Despite its easier installation and effectiveness, you should always be cautious to keep your pets and children away from the high voltage area.
This method alone can go a long way in alligator prevention. We highly recommend focusing on this step.
Step 2: Get Rid of Anything That Will Draw in Alligators
Keeping your yard free from clutter and food will give you an added advantage towards alligator prevention.
Tip 1: Remove leftovers
Alligators get hungry. They can easily smell your food from a distance. Get rid of any leftover food in your yard. We mean it! ANY food since they also like to eat fruit and veggies.
Tip 2: Seal your garbage
Try to seal your garbage to prevent any strong odors from attracting the alligators.
Tip 3: Declutter your yard
Other than the food, alligators may look at your yard as an optimal living space. If your area is disorganized, alligators might slip their way in and hide under the clutter to provide shelter.
That being said, you’ll need to implement other steps, such as installing a sturdy fence, since alligators are still a fan of your pond.
Alligator’s Already in Your Pond? Here’s What You Can Do
You can easily tell when an alligator trespassed your pond. Check around your pond’s edges. If you see an indented muddy slide, there’s your culprit.
- You should remain calm and keep your pets and children in your house. Keep your distance from your pond. Contact a professional, such as the Nuisance Alligator Hotline.
- If you’re in a situation where the alligator is biting you. Don’t just stand there. Fight back. Grab the area that it bit you from and try to poke its eyes. That’s where it’ll be most sensitive.
- Once it releases its grip, run in a straight line as far away from it as you can. Contrary to popular advice, we don’t recommend running in zig-zag. It’ll only slow you down.
Conclusion
Alligators are a protected species. This means that most states won’t allow you to trap or kill them. If you have a pond and are located in an area nearby alligators, it’s best to use prevention methods.
Before attempting any action towards removing an alligator, always consult a professional.
Never underestimate an alligator’s capabilities. They will do what they can to survive. Try your best to implement the tips we’ve mentioned and you’ll be in a much safer position. Good Luck!
