The impending end of a marriage can set off a ripple effect of many endings. In the case of one North Philadelphia couple, this meant the end of an 11 home for one alligator.
Meet Big Mack
Big Mack is his name and he first arrived in the home in 2011 when he was much smaller in size. The woman, who asked to be identified only as “Yali”, called animal control wanting a new home for Mack after she separated from her husband. The alligator specifically belonged to her soon to be ex-husband and Yali could no longer keep him.
Upon arrival, ACCT found Big Mack living in a makeshift enclosure in the now ex-couple’s basement. “It was behind a padlocked door, there was a narrow set of stairs nearby, some weights, somebody worked out nearby,” detailed Sarah Barnett, ACCTPhilly executive director, to NBC10 when asked about where the animal was found.
Yali’s soon to be ex-husband was sad to see Mack go. Yali, however, made up her mind.telling NBC10 “My husband had him since 2011. We’ve had him all these years. He’s been in the basement, but now we’ve separated and I want him out of here,” she said.
The City Of Gators
Surprisingly, Big Mack is the fourth large reptile seized from a Philadelphia home in the last month! The amount of people with illegal gators in the city was astonishing to ACCT.
Indeed Big Mack was big! The gator was 8-foot-long and weighed 127 lbs and not done growing. Gators continue to grow to about age 30. Big Mack would have undoubtedly grown even bigger to supersized Mack.
ACCT To The Rescue
Although it is illegal in Pennsylvania to house a dangerous animal like Big Mack, officials will not be bringing charges against the couple because they do not want to dissuade other homeowners in similar situations from coming forward.
“These people did the right thing. They had this animal. They called us. They asked for help. They coordinated with us. And, that’s what we want people to do,” said Barnett.
Ultimately, it took three people to safely carry out Big Mack. In the case of Yali, it was a real-life see you later alligator!