Alligator shows up unannounced at South Carolina woman's home

MYRTLE BEACH, SC (WMBF) – Who's that knocking at my door?

That was probably the question running through Mandy Johnson-Plucinski's head on Tuesday night, just as she and her son were getting ready for bed.

There was the initial sound, and then another.

"I heard it again and our dog barked," said Plucinski, who lives in Cameron Village located in the area of S.C. 707 and Bay Road.

She turned on the porch light and saw the source of the noise – an alligator resting outside the front door.

"We were shocked," Plucinski said of her and her 14-year-old son's reaction.

She placed a call to Horry County's non-emergency number. The dispatcher gave her the 800 number for the Department of Natural Resources.

DNR then had Russell "The Snake Chaser" Cavender give Plucinski a call. He told the woman he would be there in about 40 minutes.

The alligator simply waited.

"He didn't move. He stayed there the whole 40 minutes," she said.

By 11 p.m., Cavender was on the scene to wrangle up the 7 foot, 100-plus pound gator and relocate it.

This week's wet weather is more than likely to blame for the animal's appearance.

"Whenever we get rain like this … alligators seem to have a tendency to move around at night," Cavender said.

Having a pond in their backyard, Plucinski said she and her family have previously been visited by uninvited wildlife guests.

A large snapping turtle once showed up at the front door, just as the gator did.

"I thought, this could only happen to us," Plucinski said on her reaction to Tuesday night's excitement.