N.Y. Man Who Kept 750-Pound Pet Alligator In Home Says Animal Protection ‘Ruined His Life’ By Seizing The Reptile

An upstate New York man was left distraught after state government agents removed his 750-pound pet alligator. 

Tony Cavallaro explained the heartbreak he saw in his pet’s eyes. “I know his look, and that happy face that you see is not there no more,” Cavallaro told the New York Post, “He looks very lost and very distraught.” 

The 34-year blind alligator has been shipped to a new home in Texas. “Reptiles express a lot; they have as much expression as humans; you just don’t see it a lot because there’s scales.”

After an anonymous tip that Cavallaro had allowed children to swim with Albert in a $120,000 enclosure in his Hamburg, New York, home, the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) raided the house and seized Albert. Cavallaro last had a valid permit for Albert in 2021. 

Cavallaro soon learned that Albert had been taken to Beaumont, Texas, and now lives at the Gator Country Adventure Park. Cavallaro believes Albert will be now used as a “circus monkey” and mistreated. 

“It’s a money grab, and it’s disgusting that they’re using them for that,” he said. “Everybody that knows me and knows how I took care of this animal knows that they’re lying.”

Asked if he wants to reunite with his pet gator, Cavallaro said, “He’s gonna see me, and then I’m gonna have to leave him, and that’s gonna destroy him even more. He’s friendly as friendly a gator as you ever wanna meet.”

“I’d start bawling my eyes out. I know I would. I know darn well it’s gonna be horrible—the whole thing. I’m gonna see him, and it’s just gonna bust me up. I bust every time I see his face on TV… he misses his own pool,” he added. 

Cavallaro is now preparing to take legal action. In April, he hosted a fundraiser to pay for legal fees. He is also considering suing the government for defamation.

 “They ruined my life over this,” he said. “I can’t get motivated over anything. I don’t sleep. I don’t know what to do anymore.”