Half-ton 'dinosaur' alligator caught by airline pilot

Lisa Dutschke posted the following on Facebook: I'm sorry, but this thing is a dinosaur and could probably eat like Santa Claus and all his reindeer! The skinner weighed it...just over 1,000 lbs! That's a 1/2 ton monster! 🐊 Since lots of people are asking similar questions and my father is crazy and a badass all at the same time, here's some info: He went out in this adventure ALONE in Lake Okeechobee not really expecting to find anything...just scoping out his huntin' grounds. Happened to see a gator hunter friend out on the same lake and...well long story short, they ended up on my dad's boat, saw this monster and went for it. It took them an hour and a half to reel it in til it was on the boat. Since it was so massive, he brought it home to show it off to anyone who would come see it at 1am, then took it to a skinner asap in Belle Glade, FL. All of this is timely since its fresh meat. The skinner keeps the meat, then my dad takes the skin, but the skin won't be ready for a whole year! For the skin to turn into purses and wallets and belts and boots, the skin has to go through a pretty lengthy process which i know nothing about. But I do know you get to choose the color of your leather! (I'll take a purse this year, dad!🤗. FYI to get a purse made from gator skin that you caught costs about $1,200, so I won't be getting a purse.) Oh, and he gets to keep the skull! I think they bury it, actually, and let little critters chizzle at the leftover flesh underground...then when they dig it up- you have a big beautiful alligator skull that will probably go IN THE MIDDLE of my parent's living room. Excited, mom?🤣 Then next year comes and he hopes and prays talks about how he really wants to win the gator hunting permit lottery here in Florida. And he just told me that he's gonna get a bigger one next year and I sort of believe him! 🐊