Texas Wildlife Abuse by a Wildlife Officer

[Mustangrde1]

I woke up this morning to news on the TV nothing new I thought a large alligator was found in a neiborhood ,What I did not expect or even believe was what next happened. It was 1st in Texas not here in Florida.

Apparently a 9 foot gator was found in this neiborhood and a officer showed up and noosed the animal then dragged it approximately 100 to 200 yards down the road as it was flipping , flopping and rolling. He then stopped and shot the animal in front of the neibors which included children.

Had any of us done this we would have at least been cited and wourse been arrested. Alligators are still a protected species in Texas. The actions of this officer are no less than animal cruelty and abuse.

http://news.mysanantonio.com/story.cfm?xla=apwire&xlc=988764

Above is a news story.Below is the texas wildlife departments link

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/

[BWSmith]

I hae replied to this on many forums and I feel that it was horrible. i would have been much more humane to shoot it on the spot. Idealy, it should have been relocated. But failing that, it should not be "dispatched" in view of the general public. What message does that give thekids?

[KrokadilyanGuy3]

What message does that give thekids?


.. Life sucks, then you get your home stolen, and then you get dragged a bit and shot in the head for Jay walking.

[NewLineReptile]

what a loser someone should drag him behind a truck and put a bulit in his head.

[mike17l]

i registered on this site just to post on this thread.

the officer did the best he could in the situation given. game wardens in texas are not trained to wrestle and tie up alligators, they are trained to protect wildlife and people. the officer was working by himself and a 9 foot gator is a little big for one man, especially a man not trained to haldle gators. did any of the bleeding heart librals that complained about this situation bother to help? no they didnt. the officer didnt drag the gato 200-300 yards away, he drug it more than a mile at a speed no faster than 3 miles an hour. he drug the alligator so that the children wouldnt have to see it get shot, he did it in the best intrest of the people present. over all the officer did the best he could.
people that think like yall do are probably the same ones that think it is cruel to shoot rattle snakes, even though they are found in the barn or near the dogs or cattle.

[mk-ultra]

holy **** !!!!!!! what about calling for back up !!!!!! the guy didnt do the best he could he tried to be the hero of the situation ... and mike17 yes i do think shooting rattle snake is the stupidest thing to do ... its all about education its not because the law let you carry a gun that you have the moral right to shoot everything that threats you or your dogs or cattles these creatures have the same rights as you to live wherever they want you do not own the land ... the land owns you so you better have some respect for what you live with cause one day natures will find its way to get rid of you

sorry but i had to say it

[Mustangrde1]

Hey Mike171

This happened in a West Houston suburb 1st of all NOT some small town with hardly any Police or Humane Society/Animal control. So the officer could have called for assistance. THAT'S WHY THEY HAVE RADIOS in their trucks. This officer was Lazy at very best.

Secondly did the officer even ask for help from as you call them the {bleeding heart liberals,} hell lets forget them for one second did he call for any help what so ever. Maybe from other officer and or maybe from anyone like say a trapper, let me think IM sure Texas has a few trappers and maybe a few cops or FEDERAL FISH AND WILDLIFE OFFICERS, no matter the gator was 9 feet long it could have been contained in a small area until help arrived.

Now as for Your comment about shooting a rattler. I know many people that find them in the home the barn the garden, etc., etc., that don't shoot them, instead they pick them up and move them with a shovel. rake or whatever. Or they call ANIMAL CONTROL. oh and by the way these people do not know how to handle or even like reptiles but have the common since not to just kill something, or abuse it.

Conservation and Education are the key to ALL wildlife survival. What this officer did was a travesty to everything he is supposed to stand for.

[Simon R. Sansom]

Mike 171,
You stated that the officer "drug (the correct term is "dragged") it for more than a mile"...Yeah, that sounds really humane.
And yes, I DO have a problem with people killing wild animals just because they're on their property. You can't solve all of life's problems with a gun. People CAN learn to co-habit with "dangerous" wildlife. All it takes is a little common sense.
You'll find that you won't get a warm reception for your "wild west" mentality on this forum!

Good day to you!

Simon

[Gregg M]

Looks like we got one of those hillbilly Texans that think rattlesnake roundups are cool and fun....... YEEEEEEHAAAAAAW...... No offence to the normal nature loving people of Texas....... Hey buddy the snake were there before people........ The way I see it is that we are living on the snakes land....... It still amazes me how ignorant some people are....... I dont think you would like to be taken from your home, draged behind a truck at miles an hour and shot...... Would you???? Would you like to be shot for being near some cattle????

[dlucka]

"he drag it more than a mile at a speed no faster than 3 miles an hour"
That's a nice guy, wow tie down on the road by the feet you can walk on your hand? Will it be human? That guy had tie the gator so he just had to call for help, it had take maybe a half hour to find help. Then relocate it and get nice credit for it. No that guy is a super zero (heros) he control the situation by his self... That guy will die before asking direction.

As for your rattle snake are you sure you want me to talk about this.

Hey Mike171 you are welcome here but next time you take your gun out to kill some thing that you are afraid of, think of us there is so more way.

Have a nice day

[KrokadilyanGuy3]

..Hmm, well from what I know (Oklahoma, Arkansas) It is illegal to disturb (helping or not) a warden doing his job and a warden can not ask for help by surounding citizens being if they got hurt, lawsuit. So you can't pen it off on the locals.
And the gator was all of 9 foot. Two men could carry that puppy away. Hell, I can lift one of my 8 footers into the back of my truck. So, that's no excuse. And Come on, if he could tie a rope onto the gator to drag it then Im sure he could put a noose around the neck and throw a blind onto it's head. But state laws show that anything over 4' is dangerous in all states crocodlians reside in so I guess it doesnt realy matter. People are sissies.. Dead is dead whether there was a few hundred feet of being dragged. But go figure.

.. Shooting a rattler by a barn. Why would that be logical? I mean, would you honestly shoot a human if he was trespassing?
What if it was a hot female? What would the difference be? Lets also not foget its not your land. Sure, you sign a piece of paper and gave money for it. But its not yours. The evil slithering creature that has cursed death onto your barn claims the rights of your land. Dont like it. Move. But hey that wouldnt be fun now would it. Yee Haw!

Xain.

[cobraman]

I don't even need to touch this one, you all did a fine job replying. We must not be in the minority on our thinking pertaining to this stupidity, as that officer is facing disciplinary action by not only his department, but the feds as well. I'm not so sure I would have registered here just to display that attitude, but no doubt he has a new screen name by now.
Ray Hunter

[Mike177]

ok first of all i dont want ANYONE confusing Mike171 with Mike177 and second of this officer had SOOO SOOO many other options if he was scared for his life he probly would not of tied it up but just leave it alone or of shot it on the spot. he could of easaly called for backup, called someone who knew what they where doing maby an herp socity and i know for a fact there is one in houstin, or dose anamal control ring a bell? the list goses on. and to adress the rattle snake thing if a dog was walking around your barn would you shoot it? NO. just the same as you should with snakes. i heard a quote "if anamals hunted us with the same vigor as we hunted them the american contryside would be a very dangous place. i am going to stop befor i get to worked up and remember

Mike177 good Mike171 not so good

[BWSmith]

Gee, alot happened ont his thread while I was out EDUCATING THE PUBLIC all weekend on why we should NOT kill rattlers, gators and other "dangerous" animals.

Well, lets discuss "Dangerous Animals" for a minute. 20 times more people die every year from horses than snakes. In fact, how many gator related fatalities do we have every year? Would the tables be turned if he was dragging a horse down the street and shooting it? Of course it would. It is furry! What about a dog? Hundreds of people die from dogs every year. But, oh, yeah, it is fluffy.

the officer did the best he could in the situation given
No he didn't. There were countless other options.

game wardens in texas are not trained to wrestle and tie up alligators
Then why try? Bring in someone who can do it! Kindof a no brainer. If someone shows up with a car with a flat tire and I am not qualified to work on it, would I light it on fire or call a mechanic?

they are trained to protect wildlife and people
Protect wildlife huh? Wow, bang up job he did there.

did any of the bleeding heart librals that complained about this situation bother to help?
That statement is too dumb to even reply too other than to say that anyone who cares about the wellbeing of wildlife is a "bleeding heart liberal". Sorry, but I consider that a sign of character and i consider the officer's actions cowardly.

people that think like yall do are probably the same ones that think it is cruel to shoot rattle snakes, even though they are found in the barn or near the dogs or cattle.
Amen! People that think like you probably think rattlers chase you and Cottonmouths jump in the boat to attack you. You undermine all that the reptile educational community tries to accomplish. Do I rescue snakes from people's yard and walk them through an ID over the phone? uh......... only about 10 TIMES A WEEK!

Thanks for the response and have fun chopping heads off "dangerous Creatures" at the roundup. Meanwile, I will be out educating the public as to the TRUTH about snakes and gators and doing my part to protect these creatures.

[Hamster of Borg]

Knowing animal control in the central TX area, not sure about Houston, I wouldn't call them either. They'd probably do the same thing. Houston has a very good herp society though, I'm sure there are many people who would have been more than willing to help. Another thing should be noted, alligators are not protected in TX because of anyone wanting to actually protect and preserve the species - they are 'protected' more because they are a game animal. So they can make more money to let people hunt them, and also to 'protect' alligator farms. They are a commodity... regardless, doesn't excuse this officer's actions. They were wholey uncalled for. The response of TXPW was even more ridiculous.

Rav

[Simon R. Sansom]

...and why the hell would anyone with even an iota of functional grey matter kill a snake near their barn? The snake's there to eat the rodents, for God's sake!

... and how would folks like it if I set up a stall on the street and started torturing, tormenting, and beheading cute little puppy-dogs and kitty-cats so that I could sell baseball hats with their heads glued on as pathetic souvenirs? And if I got pretty girls from the surrounding communities to gut and skin 'em. That'd last about 5 minutes, because PETA or some other group of hypocritical freaks would put a stop to that right quick, wouldn't they?

Seriously, though; do ANY of the high-profile, so-called "Animal Rights" groups officially protest the rattlesnake round-ups? Just curious.

Take care everyone!

Simon

[coltiger]

If the officer was not trained then how did he come about to tying the gator up? Now if someone had done that to another human the guy would be hung....someone should drag that guys *** 3 miles an hour and then shot....I guess he would strugle too. There is no excuse to shoot a captured animal....this does show ignorance and stupidity. You would think they would educate guys before sticking them on a job. Iam no gator expert but I sure as hell would not be afraid to hold it awhile until help arrives. Stupid is stupid does

[Mustangrde1]

Well I just cant seem to let this go its really eating at me. Something about abusinging an animal always does. So ive been doing a little hot headed research and here is what ive found so far. I'll let you read it and try and figure it out.

http://endangered.fws.gov/i/C0O.html

This a direct link to the United States Fish and Wildlife site reguarding American Alligators.

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/involved/pubhear/comment/faq.phtm

This link will take you to the Texas States responce to whats going on , Now im no rocket scientist but this smells alot like a bad outhouse on a hot summers day at a chilli cook off.

[KrokadilyanGuy3]

Scot, try that 2nd link again..

[Mustangrde1]

Ok try this one http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/involved/pubhear/comment/faq.phtml

That should work