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Watch (If You Can) an Elderly Florida Man Pry His Dog from an Alligator

Dec. 19, 2020 Update: Gunner has been named a “deputy dog” by the Lee County Sheriff’s Office. (His dog dad truly deserves to be co-honored, don’t you think?)

I don’t know 74-year-old Richard Wilbanks of Estero, Fla., but I do know this for sure: He will likely never, ever, ever, let his dog walk off-leash near his backyard pond again. That’s what he was doing when his little dog Gunner, a 3-month-old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, was snatched and dragged underwater by a small alligator.

“We were just out walking by the pond,” Wilbanks told CNN, “and it came out of the water like a missile. I never thought an alligator could be that fast. It was so quick.”

Wilbanks immediately sprang into action and was able to pry Gunner from the alligator’s jaws (even without dropping the cigar dangling from his mouth!). It took an agonizing 12 seconds, but Wilbanks and Gunner, amazingly, weren’t seriously injured. Gunner has recovered after being treated by a veterinarian for a puncture wound in his belly, Wilbanks told WINK. Wilbanks said his hands were chewed up and he had to get a tetanus shot.

The whole scary incident, which happened in late October, was captured on video, thanks to cameras placed on Wilbanks’ property by a partnership between the Florida Wildlife Federation and the nonprofit fStop Foundation in an effort to monitor local wildlife.

Wilbanks doesn’t blame the alligator for just doing what alligators do, and doesn’t want the critter to be removed or killed. “They’re part of nature and part of our lives,” he told CNN, adding that in the future, Gunner would only be walked on a leash at least 10 feet away from the pond.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) released a warning for pet parents following this incident, WINK reports. “We encourage everyone to take precautionary measures, particularly those who live or recreate near the water,” the FWC stated. “Dogs and cats are similar in size to the natural prey of alligators. Do not allow pets to swim, exercise or drink in or near waters that may contain alligators. Keep pets on a short leash and away from the water.”

Amen. Here’s the video, which is difficult to watch even though both Gunner and Wilbanks lived to tell/bark the story.

Other Dogs Saved by Their Owners from Alligators

Gunner wasn’t the first, and unfortunately won’t likely be the last, dog to be saved from an alligator by their owner. Here are two I’ve previously written about:

Another elderly man, 75-year-old Buddy Ackerman of Palm Harbor, Fla., was walking Oso, his daughter’s Golden Retriever, on a retractable leash in July 2019 when an 8-foot-long alligator slithered out from a retention pond and snatched the dog. Ackerman immediately began kicking the gator’s snout, and Oso was released unharmed.
In July 2015, 52-year-old Lori Beiswenger saved Hope, her 9-year-old Terrier mix, after the dog was snatched by an alligator on the Inverness, Fla., golf course she owns. Beiswenger pulled on the gator’s tail until it released her dog. Hope suffered a severed artery and other injuries, but recovered after surgery.

Photo: ABC7 News Bay Area/YouTube

Elderly Florida Man Rescues Golden Retriever from Alligator

As Buddy Ackerman was out for predawn walk in Palm Harbor, Fla., earlier this week with Oso, his daughter’s Golden Retriever, an 8-foot-long alligator slithered out from a retention pond and snatched Oso.

Ackerman was using a retractable leash to walk Oso, so he didn’t see the alligator attack as the dog was taking a potty break near the pond — but he heard Oso whimpering.

“He was squealing a good bit when the thing grabbed him,” Ackerman, a 75-year-old grandfather, told ABC Action News. “Me, I’m a nervous wreck, I go up and slip and fall on my rear end, and the two of us are tugging. Alligator is going one way, I’m going the other.”

Although it may not seem like the safest thing to do, Ackerman did just what many pet parents, or parents of pet parents, might do in such a horrible situation. He immediately began kicking the alligator’s snout. It worked: The gator “opened its mouth real wide and backed up a little,” Ackerman told ABC Action News. It dropped Oso and crawled back into the pond.

Speaking of not being the safest thing to do, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) warns residents not to allow their pets to swim, exercise or drink in or near waters that may contain alligators.

It’s also important to note that some veterinarians and animal welfare experts are opposed to retractable leashes because they can be dangerous. “There are many reasons to avoid or reconsider the use of a retractable leash,” writes Dr. Marty Becker, “starting with the fact that on this type of leash, your dog can get far enough away from you to either get into trouble or into harm’s way” — as Oso and Ackerman so scarily discovered. These leashes can also cause injuries to dogs and people, “from superficial burns and cuts to horrific amputations,” Becker writes.

The good news is that neither Oso or Ackerman suffered any serious injuries during the attack. As for the gator, Ackerman called the FWC’s Statewide Nuisance Alligator Program (SNAP) hotline and reported it. An alligator that looked like Oso’s attacker was trapped by wildlife officials later that day.

Ackerman’s daughter, Jody, says her dad is a hero. “Osi and I are so very grateful that nobody was hurt,” she told ABC Action News.

“I’m chalking it up to good luck,” Ackerman told the Tampa Bay Times. “I was worried more about my daughter and how she would feel.”

Photo: @abcactionnews/Twitter

Pit Bull Service Dog Dies While Saving Owner from Alligator Attack

Robert Lineburger is alive today thanks to his seizure-detection dog, a Pit Bull named Precious.

But it wasn’t her detection of a seizure that saved Lineburger.

Two months ago, as Lineburger and Precious were walking to a restroom at the Port LaBelle Marina in Florida, where they live on a boat, an alligator suddenly lunged out of the water and onto the dock.

Because there are no lights around the marina, Lineburger didn’t see the alligator until it was too late.

Precious “jumped in front of me,” Lineburger told WPTV. “She was roughly 2 to 3 feet away from me when the gator attacked.”

The alligator killed Precious, but Lineburger was unharmed. His hero dog would be alive today if the marina had proper lighting, Lineburger said.

“We have no lighting, which is mandatory code enforcement,” he told WPTV. “Fire extinguishers are mandated by the fire marshal, we have cluttered docks, and at night with no light, you can’t see the clutter. You trip over them, and now you put the alligator problem on top of it, it’s a place for a disaster to happen.”

A neighbor told WPTV he’s seen alligators all around the marina, and has no doubt they’ve been on the dock.

Lineburger wants Glades County code compliance officers to inspect the marina. Nothing will bring back Precious, but Lineburger hopes the tragedy will help others be safe.

“I do not want her death to be in vain,” he told WPTV. “At least let it accomplish something and get some of these violations taken care of.”

Photo via Twitter

Fearless Florida Woman Grabs Alligator, Saving Her Dog

It was the worst screaming Lori Beiswenger said she’d ever heard. To her horror, she realized it was coming from Hope, her 9-year-old Terrier mix. A 7-and-a-half foot alligator had Hope in its jaws and was dragging her into a pond at the Point O’ Woods Golf Course in Inverness, Fla., which Beiswenger owns.

“I said, ‘God, no, this can’t be happening,’ and it was the scariest feeling in the world,” Beiswenger told WTSP.

She may have been feeling scared, but when no one immediately responded to her cries for help, the 52-year-old potential Dog Mom of the Year winner fearlessly jumped into the pond and grabbed the gator’s tail.

“I pulled him back and he started thrashing and rolling her some more,” Beiswenger told WFTS.

But she wasn’t about to give up Hope. “I just kept pulling it, saying, ‘You’re not getting her, you’re not going out there,’ because I knew what he had in mind,” she told WTSP.

After three good pulls on its tail, the alligator released Hope. Beiswenger could see her dog’s nose poking out of the water, but the gator disappeared.

Beiswenger continued screaming for help. Jody Daniels, a golf course volunteer, showed up and, using a shovel, removed Hope from the pond.

“I thought it was dead because all I could see was the whites of its eyes,” Daniels told WFTS.

But Hope was alive and, after that ordeal, she was even able to take off running.

“When he pulled her out, she started running up the bank, and the gator did, too,” Beiswenger told WTSP.

Daniels hit the alligator’s head with the shovel. Beiswenger told WFTS the alligator was later trapped and killed by a private company. (Too bad it couldn’t have been relocated to a safer location.)

As for Hope, she suffered a severed artery and other injuries, but is recuperating after three hours of surgery. “It’s really a miracle that she survived it,” Beiswenger told WTSP.

Like a cat, Hope seems to have multiple lives. Beiswenger rescued her just before she was to be euthanized. Hope also survived being struck by a car.

Beiswenger told WTSP rescuing Hope was the “dumbest, bravest” thing she’s ever done.

“I love this dog. I wasn’t going to lose her,” Beiswenger said.

Photo via Facebook