'Emotional support alligator' spotted being walked through US park

Alligators can also make great support animals, it seems.

People that visited Love Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, were in for a surprise when they spotted a young girl walking an alligator on a leash.

A video from the park taken on Friday (26 August) showed the child, who was trailed along by the reptile, which laid on its stomach to cool off in a puddle.

The alligator, named Wally, was also sporting a collar labelled an emotional support pet.

According to the Philly Voice, Wally was quite friendly as he let strangers in the park pet him.

He was apparently very friendly to others in the park and let strangers pet him.

Wally’s owner, Joie Henney, is a reptile enthusiast with multiple gators. It’s not clear who was walking Wally on Friday.

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Once people on social media caught wind of Wally’s appearance at the park, they were quick to share their two cents, many of which weren’t fond of the cold-blooded animals as pets.

One person on Twitter: “not to be a 6H person, but can we stop using wild animals as pets ?”

“Wish folks would be normal and not have wild animals as pets and also not risk the safety of said animal and public,” another added.

A third wrote: “What could possibly go wrong?”

Check out other reactions below.

In an interview, Henney said that he had experienced a hard depression, and Wally was the animal to bring him out of it.

“My doctor wanted to give me anti-depression medicine, and I refused to take it,” he said, choosing to spend time with the gator.

Henney further said that Wally is federally registered as an emotional support animal and claimed that gators are easier to train than dogs.

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