While most people choose dogs, cats, or small animals as pets, Cavallaro bought Albert the alligator at a reptile show in 1990. The two often served each other during his nearly 34 years by the indoor pool Cavallaro had built for Albert.
But the Department of Environmental Protection said in a statement that officers took the 33-year-old alligator to a “licensed caretaker” after Cavallaro illegally allowed people to pet Albert. .
Cavallaro told The Washington Post that she is fighting for Albert's return and plans to make any changes the state requires to live with her “baby” again.
“This is ruining my life,” said Cavallaro, 64. “I mean, I'm a mess and I'm falling apart.”
In the late 1980s, Cavallaro began collecting reptiles, including geckos, chameleons, and snakes, as a hobby. In August 1990, he attended a reptile show in Columbus, Ohio, where a baby alligator was for sale. Cavallaro thought the crocodile's overbite and short snout were cute, so he bought the 2-month-old crocodile. Cavallaro named him Albert Edward so that his nickname would become Al E. Gator.
Cavallaro obtained a permit from the New York State Department of Environmental Protection for educational purposes. He took Albert to reptile shows at colleges, community centers, and amusement parks, where Cavallaro taught audiences about reptiles while displaying them.
Cavallaro brushed Albert's teeth and fed him chicken, pork and cheese cubes. Cavallaro said Albert cut himself when he was a baby, but he hasn't been aggressive in recent decades. Albert doesn't even tear up his stuffed alligator or dinosaur.
Cavallaro said that in the early 2000s, Albert accidentally bit his hand while feeding an alligator a chicken wing. Cavallaro said Albert felt so guilty that he stopped eating. After a series of bad days and a breakup with his girlfriend, Cavallaro returned home to spend time with Albert.
“It helps me forget everything else,” Cavallaro said.
In 2016, Cavallaro spent about $115,000 on an additional room for Albert in his Hamburg, New York, home. He included a pool with a waterfall and exit ramp, underfloor heating, and an underground filtration system. He decorated the room to resemble a golf course in Florida, which is home to many American alligators. He installed a fake palm tree and cut carpet to create a makeshift putting green, where Albert slept on a pillow.
Albert enjoys sitting under waterfalls and by jets for days. Cavallaro liked to brush the soles of Albert's ticklish feet, and Albert smiled and tried to escape by ducking under the water.
Cavallaro included Albert in his will, asking that he be sent to an animal sanctuary in Fort Myers, Florida.
Cavallaro said he filed a new alligator application because his state license to keep alligators expired in 2021. But Cavallaro said she would have to pay about $18,000 for a fence around the garden, plus zoo insurance, to renew her permit.
Cavallaro said friends took pictures next to Albert. The Department of Environmental Protection said in a statement to the Post that allowing people to come into contact with the crocodile is “prohibited and grounds for revocation of the permit and relocation of the crocodile.”
Cavallaro, who lives alone, said if he had known the Department of Environmental Protection would be visiting his home on March 13, he would have made the requested changes.
Cavallaro said she was driving home from an errand at the post office when she saw multiple cars and vans on the street and in her driveway. Cavallaro said when she approached her home, Department of Environmental Protection officials told her they had a warrant to search her home. About 30 minutes later, Cavallaro said officers informed him that Albert was being taken away.
Since then, Cavallaro said he has had little sleep, lost his appetite and lost more than a dozen pounds. He says that when he enters Albert's room, he cries.
Cavallaro said she reached out to friends across the state for help. Friends started an online petition with more than 121,000 people calling for Albert's return, and Cavallaro said he was pursuing a lawsuit against the Department of Environmental Conservation.
He said he couldn't help but think about how scared Albert would be in his new home.
“I miss him so much,” Cavallaro said. “I can't even explain it.”
