S.O.S. from Bad Boy George: ‘Rogue Male’ Croc Seeks New Home by Katerina Lorenzatos Makris
Smiling George (Photo - San Pedro Sun)
Gotta confess. Sometimes, even we happily married ladies, somewhere in our hearts, love those bad boys. Especially the really big bad boys—the ones with the silent, rippling power that can suddenly come splashing up out of nowhere and snatch you off your feet.
And oh those sly smiles. To die for!
Literally.
Husband forgive me, but on a recent trip to Belize one such bad boy stole my heart. He is officially known as a “rogue male,” no less. George. Ah, George.
Help create a habitat like this for George (Photo - ACES)
To make matters worse, George needs help. How to resist a big, beautiful, bad boy who needs you? Impossible.
So I promised one of his best buds, Cherie, that I’d spread the word about what, exactly, George needs: a new home.
Marine biologist Cherie Chenot-Rose and her husband Vince Rose, a wildlife behaviorist, founded and run the American Crocodile Education Sanctuary (ACES)
in Punta Gorda. The two of them are originally from the U.S, but the
word “American’ in this case applies to George’s species, and that of
many of the reptiles that ACES rescues— Crocodylus acutus, or the
American crocodile.
During my visit to ACES in February,
Chenot-Rose described George’s checkered past and current predicament
(see our Q&A below).
Donations are urgently needed to save his life.
Even bad boys deserve a little love, or at least a second chance.
How about helping ACES give George something to smile about?
ANIMAL BEAT Q&A WITH CHERIE CHENOT-ROSE
Animal Beat: Why was George a problem where he was? And how did he get to be a problem?
Chenot-Rose:
Crocodile George was being fed by local boys as a tourist attraction
for several years. It is illegal to feed wildlife in Belize; and, it is
also illegal to approach and interact with any of Belize's protected
species according to the Belize Wildlife Protection Act (Chapter 220).
So,
not only is it illegal but it is very dangerous to feed any wild apex
predator.* Just like feeding bears, the crocs become fearless of man
and actually start seeking out man as a food source. [*An apex predator
is an animal at the top of the food chain.]
The boys were actually encouraging tourists and their children to sit on the crocodile’s back for photographs.
Animal Beat: How did he end up with you?
Chenot-Rose:
ACES works closely with the Belize Forest Department (BFD) in rescuing
problematic crocodiles as an alternative to killing them.
Another
local paper, the San Pedro Sun, brought the incident to the attention
of ACES and the BFD. In 2008, with permits from the BFD, ACES
volunteered our time and traveling expenses to rescue the dangerous
12-foot, male crocodile.
Animal Beat: Why does he need his own enclosure?
Chenot-Rose:
George is what we call a rogue male. He is extremely territorial and
has already killed two other rescued male crocodiles in containment.
Once
it was determined the two new 12-foot crocs were not going to fight,
George was removed from the half-acre containment area and placed in a
holding pen so that the other two crocodiles could be placed in
suitable habitat. George's new facility, when complete, will be able to
house him and up to three large females.
Animal Beat: How far along are you on building the new enclosure?
Chenot-Rose:
ACES has enlarged the natural waterways in the area for a sufficient
depth and breadth of water area. Just yesterday received notice of a
generous donation from Mr. Ripley Comegys that will enable us to
purchase and erect fencing. ACES still needs funding for rock, concrete
and steel for the fencing's footer and labor.
Animal Beat: How much $ do you need for it to be completed?
Chenot-Rose: ACES only needs about $3,000 U.S. more to complete the natural containment area for George.
Animal Beat: By when does he need this new enclosure?
Chenot-Rose:
We pray that we obtain the funding ASAP, because as the heat of dry
season is upon us, the holding pen George is currently in will not be
suitable for his size. If it starts to get too hot prior to completion,
ACES would possibly have to put George down, out of humanity.
Katerina Lorenzatos Makris is the author of 17 novels for
publishers including Avon, E.P. Dutton, and Simon & Schuster, and
hundreds of articles for publications such as National Geographic
Traveler, San Francisco Chronicle, and Veggie Life. She wrote a
teleplay for CBS and short fiction for The Bark magazine. With coauthor
Shelley Frost, she wrote Your Adopted Dog
(The Lyons Press). Holding a B.A. in Environmental Science Studies and
a lifelong interest in animal issues, she spends a lot of her time
battling a severe addiction to dogs.
