More than 1,000 miles from its natural habitat, a three-foot long American alligator was found by sheriff’s deputies north of Urbana Sunday afternoon around 4 p.m.

After an hour-long tussle, deputies were able to corral the pond-dweller from David and Kathy Brandeberry’s farm, 1793 state Route 29, and transport it to Freshwater Farms of Ohio Inc., 2642 N. U.S. Route 68.

“It’s not a call we get every day,” said Sgt. Aaron Brown, who responded to the scene along with deputy Nathan Kiser and a Clark State Community College cadet with experience handling animals at the Columbus Zoo and elsewhere, according to Brown.

Brown said it is unknown how the alligator arrived on the property.

“It took patience,” Brown said. “We were able to snare it, jump on its back and hold it … it was just a team effort.”

Brown added that the Brandeberrys and their neighbors, Bob and Shirley Leopard, had seen the reptile roaming the area for two days.

Dr. Dave Smith, owner of Freshwater Farms, was unburdened by the unexpected visitor.

In fact, he said “Fluffy” – as employees of the farm have dubbed the alligator – arrived at the most opportune time.

Freshwater Farms currently has a reptile permit with the state Division of Wildlife and a solar-heated barn, as it cares for large snapping turtles. What’s more, the Freshwater Farms’ annual Fish and Shrimp Festival was wrapping up Sunday afternoon when the alligator was brought in, creating a buzz amongst those still in attendance.

“We’ll give him a nice place to live,” said Smith, who estimates the alligator is five years old and should reach full maturation in about 10-15 years. Fluffy could potentially be 10 feet long by that time, he added.

Employees of the farm, especially Rob Rice, have long hoped to acquire an alligator and to name it Fluffy. Though interested, Smith said the opportunity never presented itself.

But the stars seemed to align on Sunday, and the farm’s newest attraction fell into Smith’s proverbial lap.

Smith said he called Rice on Sunday: “‘Hey Rob, Fluffy’s here!'”

The farm is about to undergo expansions in their displays, said Smith. His long-term goal is to develop the site into a family attraction, as it currently features large snapping turtles, salamanders, toads and frogs, amongst other freshwater creatures.

“For a lot of kids, this is their first encounter,” he said. “We like to be able to show kids real critters.”

The alligator will likely not be featured in the petting zoo, however, said Smith whimsically.

As he tried to corral the alligator on Monday into a corner of an 800-gallon tank – its temporary home – Smith said he was reminded of his graduate school days at Louisiana State University, where he frequently studied and took pictures of American alligators in their natural habitat.

In the swamp, said Smith, these animals are very fast and the simplest task of snapping a good photograph of them was a challenge.

He was very impressed with the work of sheriff’s deputies in capturing the alligator.

“We’re lucky they were able to catch him. We had the right people at the right time,” he said, adding that the displacement of animals like the American alligator is a major safety hazard for both people and the animals displaced.

“That’s the problem with people turning these animals loose in the wild,” he said, recalling a recent incident in which a large Banana Python was found at Cedar Bog.

Not only do these alligators pose a threat to residents who are unfamiliar with such animals, said Smith, but the harsh Midwest winter would quickly kill these reptiles.

“We have the material to build a good size area (for the alligator inside the solar-heated barn). We’ll continue to develop,” he said, adding that Freshwater Farms hopes to become Fluffy’s permanent home.