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Old 06-20-2011, 02:00 AM
 
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Hi there, our move is fast approaching...we are going to be buying in Palmetto bay or Pinecrest, and we fancy houses located on Canals. My question is this - Do alligators live in these waters? do they ever cause a problem, as we have children and a dog that adores the water and is never out of it?

Any advice about living by th canals ie mosqitoes, safety issues with access to your home from the garden, alligators.. etc would be gratefully received - as ever, thanks!!
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Old 06-20-2011, 02:40 AM
 
Location: Eastern Time
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I live near the city limits and there is a big a lake in front of my house with a sigh saying: Beware Alligators Have Been Seen... I've never seen one, though. You won't be able to adapt to mosquitos, so closing your doors and windows is always the best move. Expect to see little snakes and frogs wandering around your backyard.
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Old 06-20-2011, 07:08 AM
 
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of course there are alligators. the canal system acts as a highway for alligators in south florida. in different areas canals have more or less alligators. in some places you may never see one. its all depending on how close to natural environments you are which would be where they would congregate.
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Old 06-20-2011, 07:11 AM
 
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keep in mind though that there are more alligators in south florida than anywhere else in the state. they really prefer the warmth. drive north on turner river road in big cypress in winter and you will see hundreds perhaps thousands along the canal.
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Old 06-20-2011, 09:29 AM
 
Location: Free From The Oppressive State
30,136 posts, read 23,526,778 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SARAHSELLAR View Post
Hi there, our move is fast approaching...we are going to be buying in Palmetto bay or Pinecrest, and we fancy houses located on Canals. My question is this - Do alligators live in these waters? do they ever cause a problem, as we have children and a dog that adores the water and is never out of it?

Any advice about living by th canals ie mosqitoes, safety issues with access to your home from the garden, alligators.. etc would be gratefully received - as ever, thanks!!
Alright...first of all, take a deep breath...relax. You can live amongst the alligators if you don't panic and just learn a few things to keep you safe. I used to live in the Everglades with alligators all around, I used to work with alligators. Learn a little bit, don't act like some idiots in this state and you should be fine.

The very first thing you should do is always assume that that canal, channel or man made lake is going to have a gator in it. It doesn't mean it does, just assume it because you never know. Seriously.

Second, never, NEVER feed the alligators. NEVER! It is illegal, for one, and it causes alligators to lose their fear of people. The reality is, alligators are a) lazy and b) afraid of people. They would MUCH rather swim away from you than towards you.

If you are canoeing, for example, and you see an alligator up on a bank and it dashes in to the water, it is NOT because that alligator is coming to get you. It is because the alligator feels safer in the water.

They do not go out of their way for food. What they do is sit there, for HOURS, and patiently wait for their food to come right to them. This could mean, for example, that you are sitting there, on the bank of this canal, not knowing an alligator has been under water for a good half an hour, just sitting. You get too close, yes, you can be attacked. So don't go swimming in the channel or picnicking on the banks.

Like I said, they are lazy creatures. They spend the majority of their day doing absolutely nothing.

However, idiots like to feed alligators and this changes things. This is how people end up with gators in their backyards and swimming pools eating their small dogs and children.

Your dog, even with you, on leash, walking around the perimeter of that canal is also not safe. Don't think that just because an alligator does not want to be near a human it won't go after a dog attached to a human. It will. You'll end up with half a leash and no dog.

This is not to scare you, this is to get you to know a thing or two about these creatures.

You stay NO LESS than 10-15 feet away, you do not attack, harass, feed or otherwise threaten the alligator, you will be fine. (All those things are illegal in the state of FL, by the way.)

If you see an alligator, don't try to get all close to it to take a photo and think, "Oh, it's not moving...let me get closer" and closer, and closer and closer....you get too close, it will be too late. STAY no less than 10-15 feet away.

If you see one in your backyard, leave it alone. Eventually it will move on. Don't feed it, don't try to coax it away, leave it alone. If you are that unsettled by it, call the authorities. Keep in mind, any alligator considered a "nuisance" and is over four feet, in the state of FL, will be put down. You might think, "yippee!" but not everyone in FL will share that sentiment. But, if it's in your yard where Fluffy likes to run around and play, then, I guess you'll have to have that done.

So, in summary:

Alligators are lazy. They don't eat people. (They can attack them but they are not man eating beasts...they typically eat what they can eat in one bite.)

They don't go out of their way for food. The food comes to them.

Do not feed them. If you see anyone else feeding them, tell them it's illegal. If they continue to feed them, call the authorities. FL takes this rule seriously.

Assume that the canal has gators...at least one. Assume it. Even if you never see one, assume it.

Do not walk along the edge of that canal, do not walk your dog on the edge of that canal. Tell your kids that the canal is not to be walked along, explored NOR swam in. Take them to the pool instead, (or ocean so the sharks can get them...just kidding. JUST kidding.)

If there is high brush around that canal, if it's on property of the housing development, ask the association to cut that brush back.

Stay no less than 10-15 feet away...the further away, the better.

Do not underestimate them but do not believe everything Hollywood tells you. Hollywood does more damage to animals than any other place I can think of.

If one is in your back yard, leave it alone. Call the authorities. Don't try to be a hero and show off for the neighbors. (Not saying YOU would, I've known people like this..some are lucky, some are not.)

Mosquitoes come out early morning, dusk and night. It's too hot during the day. All those people who tell you that you need mosquito spray while out in the Everglades or elsewhere, during the day, are just trying to get you to spend money on something that is pointless in the day. And if it's really hot, you spray that on, the sun bakes down on you, you'll be even more miserable. (Edit to add: unless the weather is much cooler...then they will be out in the day but typically in South Florida, day time is too hot for them.)

If you have a porch or something and want to sit on that in the evenings but the mosquitoes are too much, the best thing I've found for them is a fan. Put the fan at one end of the porch, facing your seating area and turn it on. Mosquitoes can't beat the fan. Sprays, citronella candles, all that other stuff....useless.

I have no idea what you mean by safety access from your garden to the home...???

If your dog likes the water, find a dog friendly beach. OR get them a kiddie pool but do not let the dog swim in the canal.

Edit: OH, speaking of your dog...beware of the bufo toad. Look it up on Google. Do NOT let your dog get one of these. The toxins in that toad can kill your dog almost immediately. Look it up, know what to look for, know what to do IF your dog gets one...and don't let your dog run around without supervision in areas you don't know.

Last edited by Three Wolves In Snow; 06-20-2011 at 09:57 AM..
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Old 06-20-2011, 09:41 AM
 
Location: Miami
6,853 posts, read 22,376,790 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SARAHSELLAR View Post
Hi there, our move is fast approaching...we are going to be buying in Palmetto bay or Pinecrest, and we fancy houses located on Canals. My question is this - Do alligators live in these waters? do they ever cause a problem, as we have children and a dog that adores the water and is never out of it?

Any advice about living by th canals ie mosqitoes, safety issues with access to your home from the garden, alligators.. etc would be gratefully received - as ever, thanks!!
Alligators do live in these canals and in lakes, we had one in the canal near me a few years ago. People usually don't swim in these canals, fyi. I wouldn't let my pet swim in these canals anyways as they are pretty disgusting to begin with. The best thing is to put up a solid wood fence if you are worried, it doesn't have to be very high, just high enough to keep the Buffos and alligators out.

Buffo Toads are dangerous to dogs. If your dog bites/licks a Buffo Toad it can die very quickly. If you see your dog foaming at the mouth then it has gotten a buffo, get to the hose and rinse the dogs mouth out right away with lots of water. Your dog should be ok if you rinsed it out in time and with enough water. Just watch the dog for the next hour.

Water Moccasin/Cotton Mouth snakes also live near canals, a woman in Broward was bitten last week while doing yard work by a moccasin and was rushed to the hospital for rounds of anti vennum, not fun. Snake bit season runs from Arpil to October I think they said.

As for mosquitos well they don't live or hatch in the canals thank goodness. The mosquitos feed at dusk and dawn so just avoid being outdoors at those hours (I know those are the nicest temperature times to be outside). Wear long sleeve clothing, long pants and bug spray if you have to be outside at those hours. Mosquito season usually runs from June - October or November.
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Old 06-20-2011, 09:53 AM
 
1,284 posts, read 3,880,125 times
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You always have to assume any lake or canal has gators.I was waiting for a restaurant to open up in Celebration Florida and while sitting next to the lake on Market Street we saw something moving in the water,it was a gator coming from the back of the lake towards the front where there were 5-10 people standing on a sidewalk with an overhang on top of the lake.That gator came right up to the people and just sat there like waiting for food,and guess what happened next,the idiots threw food at it,obviously not the first time as that gator went right up to them and just like it was dinnertime expected food to be thrown at it.As Gatormama said that's not a good idea.
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Old 06-20-2011, 10:07 AM
 
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beautiful break-down of information gatormama! thats one for the archives for sure!
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Old 06-20-2011, 10:31 AM
 
Location: Miami/NYC
1,209 posts, read 2,409,370 times
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please monitor your child at all times. Alligators arent really a big deal here. They usually are spotted in the canals but theyre not that big a nuisance
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Old 06-20-2011, 10:41 AM
 
35,309 posts, read 52,011,809 times
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Gators are getting more friendly
http://neveryetmelted.com/wp-images/...or-at-door.jpg
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