A second alligator sighting this year has Ronnie and Kitty Key of Hull, Texas, wondering why these scaly visitors keep turning up near their home. On Friday, Oct. 4, a 5-foot gator was discovered under their carport, just a few months after a larger 6-foot alligator showed up right at their back door in April.
The first encounter was a tense one, with the bigger alligator aggressively reacting to its own reflection in their glass door. Kitty held the door shut while her husband, Ronnie, and others carefully moved the animal off the property.
Reflecting on the unusual series of events, Kitty recalled, “When we heard noises [during the April 2024 alligator encounter], I thought it was something hitting the roof, like a fallen tree branch, so I walked around the perimeter of the house looking up, never realizing that the alligator might have been lurking nearby.”
This time, the smaller alligator was spotted lurking by their ATV that was parked under their carport. Kitty’s brother, who was stopping by to pick up hay for the Hull-Daisetta Homecoming Parade, came across the gator. Fortunately, this gator seemed more startled than threatening and quickly retreated.
Kitty is puzzled as to why the alligators keep wandering so close to their home. They have a pond nearby, but it’s monitored regularly to ensure it hasn’t become a new hangout for the reptiles.
“There are other ponds in the community where alligators are known to be seen,” she explained.
The couple has no outside pets other than a few guineas that roam their 15-acre property, making it unlikely that the gators are being drawn by food.
“We certainly are watching where we step these days,” Kitty said with a chuckle.
There’s a lot of Gators in the Hull Daisetta oilfields.