Nearly 6-Foot-Long Alligator Turned Over To Suffolk County SPCA

HAUPPAUGE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- A nearly six-foot-long alligator was turned over the Suffolk County SPCA on Tuesday.

"This is the largest that we've ever come across here on Long Island," SPCA Chief Roy Gross told 1010 WINS' Mona Rivera.

The alligator, named Rocky, was raised by Andre Ricaud, whose company Party Pets is licensed for exotic animals.

"I've had him since he was a baby," he said in a YouTube video. "I just felt it was time for him to go."

Ricaud had the animal for 17 years and said Rocky had grown too large for him to handle.

"American Alligators do not make good pets," Ricaud cautioned.

Rocky is being sent to a sanctuary in Massachusetts.