COOPER CITY, FLA. (WSVN) - The owner of a dog mauled by an alligator in Cooper City is grieving her loss and hoping her story prevents a similar tragedy.
Doral DeMattio was walking her dog Sky near a canal in the area of Orange Drive and Flamingo Road, at around 7:30 p.m., Thursday.
Sky was playing with her ball until it was time to head home. That’s when, DeMattio says, Sky went near the edge of the canal to rinse her ball.
“All of a sudden I saw the head pop up,” she said.
After spotting the alligator’s head, she ran toward Sky, but it was too late.
“He grabbed her so quick, she didn’t have a chance,” DeMattio said. “All I could do is keep yelling, ‘No, no no,’ and she drowned. It was so fast, she didn’t suffer.”
DeMattio is now mourning the loss of her best friend.
“She was my buddy, she was with me seven days a week, 24/7,” she said. “She went with me everywhere.”
She’s hoping to find peace by sharing her story, to help other pet owners and families with children.
“I’m watching somebody with a kid, and I want to reach out,” DeMattio said. “I want to say, ‘There’s a gator there.’ There’s a lot of kids and a lot of dogs, and I don’t want this to happen to anybody. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.”
The concern for DeMattio is the fact that the canal is lined by homes with families, children and small pets.
After the tragedy, she contacted the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. They sent trappers but were unsuccessful in removing gators.
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