Woman, 74, Saw a Shape in the Water and Instantly Threw Herself at an Alligator to Save Her Dog
A 74-year-old in Florida jumped onto an alligator after it grabbed her dog, and both of them survived the attack.
A regular dog walk at a Florida park turned into a split-second rescue when a 74-year-old woman spotted an alligator heading for her pet. What happened next left both owner and dog injured, but alive.
1. She says there was no time to think, only to act
Suzan Marciano had been walking at Burt Aaronson South County Regional Park in Boca Raton with her two dogs for about eight years, and she said she had never noticed animals in the water there, not even a fish.
That changed when her Golden Retriever mix, Nalu, wandered near the shore while off-leash. Marciano spotted what she recognized as an alligator in the water, and within seconds, she said, it turned and clamped its jaws onto the 11-year-old dog.
Marciano said her reaction was immediate. In the clip below, she recounts stepping into the water and coming down on top of the alligator to force it away from Nalu.
She said that as she pulled back, the alligator grabbed her hand. Marciano kept pulling until it finally let go. The move was risky, but it meant Nalu got away alive.
2. Both survived, but each needed treatment for their injuries
Once she and Nalu were away from the alligator, Marciano said she was so shocked that her first instinct was to go home and try to settle down. A friend urged her to get medical help instead.
At the hospital, Marciano received six stitches for the bite to her hand. Nalu's injuries were also serious. The dog had puncture wounds on her stomach and thigh and spent two hours in surgery.
The attack left both of them recovering physically and emotionally, but they made it through. Marciano and Nalu are now healing at home after what she described as a traumatic experience.
3. She says she does not regret it, and she still plans to go back to the park
For Marciano, the decision to jump on the alligator came down to one thing: saving Nalu. She said that if she had not done what she did, she would have lost her dog, and that would have been even more horrific for her.
Despite what happened, Marciano said she and Nalu will not stop visiting their favourite park. Instead, she plans to be much more careful and make sure Nalu does not get that close to the water again.
After the attack, Florida's Fish and Wildlife Commission inspected the lake and did not find any alligators.
The incident also comes as alligator attacks in Florida have reportedly been increasing since 2018, according to the Tampa Bay Times. The report said that rise is likely linked to population growth and development in the state. Even with that increase, the odds of an alligator incident are still described as about one in 3.1 million.
Marciano's story still stands out because of how quickly it unfolded. A walk she had taken hundreds of times with no problems suddenly became a fight to save her dog, and she did it by launching herself at the animal that had grabbed her.
