Alligator wanders into Florida woman's home: 'I was shaking so badly'

VENICE, Fla. - It was supposed to be a typical Thursday for Venice, Florida, resident Mary Hollenback. 

She was sitting in her living room and watching TV on March 28 when she heard a rattling noise at her screen door. At first, she thought nothing of it – maybe it was a neighbor. 

"I thought someone was coming into the wrong house," Hollenback told FOX 35. "The houses in my neighborhood all look alike and it’s not unusual to have someone go to the wrong house."

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When Hollenback made her way to the front door, however, she was greeted by a 7-foot-long visitor – an alligator. 

An alligator was removed from inside a home in Venice, Florida, on March 28, 2024. (Photo: Mary Hollenback)

The gator was moving around, but the floors in Hollenback's home are quite slippery, so the unexpected guest wasn't able to snag anything. 

"He sort of just crept around until he got between the island and the stove," Hollenback said. "Then he was stuck and very upset – so much so that he was hissing like a snake."

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An alligator was removed from inside a home in Venice, Florida, on March 28, 2024. (Photo: Mary Hollenback)

Hollenback immediately grabbed her phone and went outside to call 911. 

"I was shaking so badly by that point that I couldn’t think of how to call (the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission)," Hollenback said. 

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An alligator was removed from inside a home in Venice, Florida, on March 28, 2024. (Photo: Mary Hollenback)

Two Sarasota County Sheriff's Office deputies and an FWC officer made their way to Hollenback's home in Venice – and when they saw how big the gator was, they called for backup. In total, five officials helped remove the gator from Hollenback's home. 

Video she took of the scene shows the deputies and officers carrying the big guy into the bed of an FWC pickup truck. 

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An alligator was removed from inside a home in Venice, Florida, on March 28, 2024. (Photo: Mary Hollenback)

FOX 35 has reached out to FWC for more details about the incident.