This ‘unwanted guest’ at Texas home is 8 feet long and has scales, photos show

An 8-foot-long alligator was an “unwanted guest” in a Texas neighborhood, authorities said.

And it used its tail as a weapon, according to local news reports.

Deputies with the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office were called to a Humble neighborhood, north of Houston, to capture the scaly creature shortly before 2:30 p.m. Monday, May 2.

The alligator had used its tail to strike a woman’s leg, KTRK reported. She was taken to a hospital following the incident, according to KRIV.

One photo shows the alligator on shaded cement, making a nearby Diet Coke bottle look especially small.

Deputies, alongside Texas Parks and Wildlife officials, helped capture the alligator. Photos show law enforcement used blue tape and cords to restrain the reptile’s legs and mouth on a home’s front yard.

Constable Mark Herman said wildlife officials will be relocating the alligator to its “natural habitat.”

It is unclear where the alligator came from, but Texas Parks and Wildlife says American alligators are common in the “swamps, rivers, bayous, and marshes” of eastern Texas.

Alligators are protected in Texas, having once been considered endangered, and residents need a special permit to hunt, raise or own an alligator.

This story was originally published May 2, 2022 at 6:35 PM with the headline "This ‘unwanted guest’ at Texas home is 8 feet long and has scales, photos show."