Man stabs gator to protect dog

[heidiho]

GAINESVILLE, Florida (AP) -- A man jumped in a pond and stabbed a 6-foot alligator with a pocketknife to force the reptile to release his dog from its jaws.

Matthew Goff, 29, said he was walking Sugar, a tan-colored bloodhound/Shar-Pei mix, in a park when the attack occurred Wednesday evening. The unleashed dog wandered to the edge of the pond, and the gator grabbed its head.

"I couldn't stand by and watch it happen, and I had the pocketknife so I decided to try and save her," Goff said.

The gator released Sugar when Goff stabbed the reptile in the eye. The dog then ran home, escaping with three teeth marks on and about her head. Goff had a few scratches.

A state trapper planned to kill the gator if it's found.

[krdahmer]

Hmmmm...I have to say not the gator's fault, just it's instinct. Unleashed puppy was the error there. Maybe I've just watched too much Croc Hunter and Jeff Corwin, but I mean really who walks a dog near water without a leash in Florida???? DUH! And so the answer is kill the gator??? pshaw.
I say fine the owner and call it lesson learned! (Of course poor pup was innocent in all that! Poor little thing )

[heidiho]

I think what he did was incredible,i could not watch my dog get eaten alive by an alligator...I see your point,but i dont think he should be fined..

[krdahmer]

No no by all means he did the right thing by jumpin in after the pup, I would have too. I'm just saying maybe people should be fined for not having their dogs on a leash in areas like that....for the dog's own safety...and sometimes fines are the way to go, cause when it hits them in the pocketbook they tend to take notice!

[TalonsMa]

omg!

[heidiho]

Yeah i see that point,i guess he probably didnt figure there would be one in the pond,but i have heard of them being in there,so myslef,yeah i would have my dog on a leash

[shihtzulover]

I am so glad the puppy was okay. I would have done the same if an gator grabbed my dog. I am glad we have none around here - I would be scared to walk by any water

[melanie]

poor animals not allowed to be natural, how sad is it that humans should depict the behaviour of a gator and if it does not do the right thing it dies nothing is natural anymore, for gods sake a gator cannot do its natural thing and try and grab a feed, so it must be killed if found, what is the human ego coming to?? will human ego swallow itself or just implode?

[glasslass]

I think I can guarantee that owner took notice!

[SSAC]

Good owner for saving pup BUT pup shouldn't have been off leash.
Poor gator going to pay the price for just being a gator

How sad

[Catt31]

I'm not sure I'd even WANT to be walking (on or off leash) anywhere NEAR where crocs/gators live....too freaky!!! I would have done the same thing, but I wouldn't have been there in the first place!!

[glasslass]

I'm with you on that Catt! I wouldn't be walking my dog, or myself, there either!

[krdahmer]

Ya after driving that one suspended type highway down in Louisiana, where all you see is swamps and gators as far as the eye can see, knowing that if you veer off the road the least of your worries is the impact .....man am I so not going near the water anywhere down there!!!!!!!! Oh and did you know there are crazy people living on stilts down there and sending their children to school in a small boat!!! (not to offend if you are one of those people ) Brrrr....heebie jeebies!!!

[Donna Marie]

Uhm....I would have to agree with the owner's actions. I would have done the same were it my dog. It may be the animal's instinct to hunt and eat, but it is an owner's instinct to protect his or her pet at any cost. The gator was in a pond in the park....could have easily been a child that was grabbed.

[heidiho]

That is true,gators normally are not in ponds..

[Cactus Flower]

I lived in Florida for nine years, and it's not that unusual to find a gator in a pond, stream......or your swimming pool when you wake up in the morning. Folks who live there normally don't trust ANY body of water as being gator-free.
I wonder if the owner was visiting from out of state or something.
It has happened that people come in from out of state and lay by the water to sunbathe/nap, with their dogs near them. When they wake up, no doggie. Countless small dogs are lost this way each year.
Not all of these people are just visiting, though. Makes you wonder how a Florida resident couldn't have known better.