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Florida dog mom Kim Spencer pries open raging gator’s mouth to save her pooch: ‘We just got lucky’

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Florida dog mom Kim Spencer pries open raging gator’s mouth to save her pooch: ‘We just got lucky’


A fearless Florida woman jumped on top of an alligator and pried its jaws open to save her beloved dog from being attacked during their nightly stroll.

Kim Spencer and her pooch, Kona, were on an evening walk in Tampa, Fla. when a 6-and-a-half-foot alligator emerged from a nearby lake and started heading their way, according to FOX 13.

Spencer tried to pull Kona away, but the ferocious predator was too fast and quickly caught up to them.

Kim Spencer pounced on an alligator attacking her dog. WFIN

“I saw the eyes. I saw it turning itself around towards us, and I started pulling Kona away, saying, ‘Let’s go.’ But she’s a really strong dog,” Spencer told the outlet.

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“She’s facing it, it’s facing her, and it suddenly jumped at her and got her.”

Kona’s entire head and right shoulder were inside the swamp beast’s mouth when the pet parent “stopped thinking” and risked her life to save her four-legged friend.

“[I] jumped on it, straddled it, as ladylike as that is, and was trying to pry its jaws open,” Spencer added.

The scuffle didn’t last long as Spencer pried the gator’s jaws wide enough to free her furry friend.

“We just got lucky because it ran,” Spencer said. “Just as quickly as it ran after us it went right back in the water and I got up and we were out of there.”

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Both survived without significant injuries, but they did get wounded during the incident and both received stitches for their wounds.

Kona’s entire head and right shoulder were in the gator’s mouth. WFIN

The married dog owner has bandages on both hands while her precious pup has to wear a cone.

“We’re empty nesters, she’s my baby, so I wasn’t ready to take on that mindset that she’s an animal versus a human,” Spencer said.

Spencer said she and Kona — who she rescued 8 years ago — had been walking in the Westwood Lakes neighborhood when the gator launched its attack, according to Bay News 9.

Last September in Fort Myers – around 120 miles south of Tampa – an angry seven-foot, three-inch alligator attacked 84-year-old Dolores Boppel while she was on a walk with her dog near a pond.

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Spencer and her pup received stitches for their wounds. WFIN

The pooch was unharmed, but the dangerous animal took a “chunk” out of her leg and sent Boppel to the hospital.

In 2022, Eric Merda was swimming in Myakka City, Fla., when a gator took off his arm and left him stranded for three days in a swamp.

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission estimated that the state has 1.3 million alligators “of every size” and reported 11 alligator bites in 2024 and 23 in 2023, one of which was fatal.

A majority of the bites from the swamp creatures result in “major” injuries.

Alligators “prefer to go after prey they can overpower easily” and are naturally scared of humans but “may lose that fear when people feed them,” the commission claimed.

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Florida’s political sphere reacts to Nicolas Maduro’s capture as former Venezuelan president awaits court appearance

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Florida’s political sphere reacts to Nicolas Maduro’s capture as former Venezuelan president awaits court appearance



Now that the United States has captured Nicolas Maduro and intends to prosecute him and members of his family, CBS News Miami’s Jim DeFede brings us the latest developments and the fallout following the Saturday morning strikes.

Guests: U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz/ (D) FL District 25

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              Lt. Gov. Jay Collins/(R) Florida

              Ambassador Frank Mora/Former U.S. Ambassador to OAS

              Raul Stolk/Expert on Latin America

              Jon May/Represented Manuel Noriega  

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Venezuela airspace restrictions leave travelers stranded in South Florida

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Venezuela airspace restrictions leave travelers stranded in South Florida


Airspace restrictions following U.S. strikes in Venezuela have stranded airline passengers across South Florida, with some travelers facing delays of up to four days. Foreign carriers canceled flights to and from the eastern Caribbean, and the FAA continues to limit airspace in the region.



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Florida State football: South Alabama DB Nehemiah Chandler commits, will transfer to FSU

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Florida State football: South Alabama DB Nehemiah Chandler commits, will transfer to FSU


Chandler’s bio from usajaguars.com:

At Georgia Tech: Saw action in one game during his freshman season … used the season as a redshirt year.

High School: Rated as a three-star prospect by Rivals, 247Sports and ESPN … First-team all-district honoree … Versatile athlete played cornerback, wide receiver and quarterback over the course of his prep career … Four-year letterwinner earned one letter apiece at four different high schools … Began high school at Westside H.S. in Jacksonville, Fla. as a freshman (2020), then moving to the Tallahassee area, where he attended Godby H.S. as a (2021) and Munroe H.S. (2022) as a junior before returning to Jacksonville to attend Wakulla H.S. as a senior (2023) … Helped lead Wakulla to an undefeated regular season and berth in the Florida 2S state playoffs as a senior in ‘23 … Coached at Wakulla by Barry Klees … Also played basketball … Honor roll student.



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