Residents worry after crocodile snatches neighborhood dog

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (WSVN) - It's not something that comes as a surprise to most Floridians when they hear about a crocodile going after the family pet, but seeing it for yourself?

"A neighbor runs over and says, 'Hey there's a croc with a dog in his mouth!'" Christopher Carey recalled. "I can't unsee that now."

Carey, a personal trainer in Coral Gables, was working with a client earlier this week when he saw the crocodile with the dog in its mouth.

"We come over, we see it. It's barrel-rolling with the dog," he continued.

Carey knew it was too late to help, so he took out his cell phone and captured the moment on video, hoping it would serve as a reminder to his neighbors to watch their pets around the canal.

"The fact that they have these aggressive animals that can come out of the water and take a full-grown dog, anybody that doesn't have a seawall needs to be very careful."

Sandra Magalhas is having a fence installed around her property, hoping it will prevent the crocodile from getting to close to her home.

"We laugh and we make jokes and I film it, but it's a major concern," she said. "I know it will come up."

There are signs in the neighborhood that remind residents and visitors to keep their distance from the canals because of the crocodiles that live in them.

"I know we are invading their space , but we're here. And we have kids and we have pets," Magalhas added.

Carey hopes his video will reminds people to keep their pets on a short leash.

"This could happen to your dog too," he warned. "It's a full grown dog that this thing took down."

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