Unfortunately, just like bears, they grow up. Mature alligators eat a lot. They are not especially fond of their masters. In most cases, they learn to associate humans with food, not love. They need professional supervision.

The power of their jaws is almost beyond belief. They can sever an arm or a leg without breaking a sweat. Sometimes they don't do it on purpose, they just do it. That's little consolation to the victim, however.

An especially mean gator lived with a motorcycle gang in the rural suburbs of one of our major cities. It was brought back from Florida as a gift by the owner's boyfriend. A prior escape attempt had resulted in the alligator being clubbed in an attempt to kill it. It wasn't killed. Its mouth was cruelly disfigured. As a result it became mean . . . real mean.

After the beating, it lived in the basement of the gang's clubhouse. It grew to nearly 6 feet in length. The gator ate chickens. They were thrown down the basement steps to it. The residents were too afraid to do anything else.

Finally, out of desperation, the gang members called Tim's brother. He called Tim and asked him to pick up the alligator as a favor. No big deal, been there and done that, Tim thought as he drove toward the house.

After working his way down the steps, very carefully, he pulled the alligator from under a bed. After a serious tussle the alligator was subdued, its jaws secured with duct tape.

Thereafter the alligator was transferred to Jim's custody. During the transfer it broke Jim's glasses and his nose. " . . . meanest gator I've ever encountered," is Jim's printable version of the events.

The alligator lived out the rest of its days at the reptile zoo. It never got over being mean. It was that way until the last day of its life. What a shame.

The situation could have been worse. The owners could have turned it loose in the local woods, park, river, stream or lake. A lot of people do. In most cases, the released gators die a horrible death from starvation and exposure. In some cases, they live on to attack, cripple or kill a local resident. They are then killed themselves, a tragedy for both human and animal.

Look like a dog they do; act like one they don't. An adult male wolf will weigh between 75 and 125 pounds. That's larger than most dogs. Their jaws can exert up to 1,500 pounds of pressure per square inch. That's twice the pressure that can be exerted by a German shepherd.

Wolves have a keen sense of smell, acute hearing and excellent eyesight. They are far-ranging animals in the wild. They can trot for hours and are capable of traveling up to 60 miles in a single day or night. Wolves are top predators within the food chain.

Under normal conditions - in the wild - they will not harm humans. In fact, they go to great lengths to avoid human contact. The stories you hear about them sneaking into houses and following people are just that, stories. Don't believe them.

A number of breeders have crossed these magnificent creatures with dogs. A German shepherd, husky or malamute is the usual choice. According to Harrison, the German shepherd and wolf cross is a bad combination. He believes it combines the worst pet traits of both - the aggression of a shepherd and the cunning and strength of a wolf.

On top of that, because of their disposition, most hybrid wolves are kept penned up or on chains. This compounds the problem. As their attitude deteriorates, their owners spend less and less time with them. Lack of human contact makes them worse. It's a vicious cycle that rarely corrects itself.

The destructive power of these creatures cannot be overstated. They're especially dangerous around food and their pups.

Tim often tells the story of a call he received from a wolf owner saying the creature had gone "crazy." "He's tearing up everything in the house, including the walls," was the basic description of the problem.

Tim was surprised when he saw the wolf. It looked and acted normal. Then it happened. A cockroach ran across the floor and took refuge under the baseboard. The wolf, sensing a snack, ran after the bug and started ripping at the baseboard and wall. If not stopped, he would have torn down the house. He wasn't crazy. He was a wolf.

It's often said that there are no orphan wolves. The pack takes care of its own, so to speak. This should give prospective owners an insight into the problems with mother wolves and their pups. They will protect their babies, no matter the cost to themselves.

Nearly all domestic wolves and hybrid wolves are eventually killed. Most are shot when they escape and terrorize the neighborhood, others when they become unmanageable. Those that aren't killed on the spot are taken to the dog pound, where they are eventually destroyed. They are not adoptable.

If you love wolves and admire their beauty and strength, why subject them to such a fate? Keeping these animals for pets is not helpful to the species, the environment or to Mother Nature. They are wild predators. Let them live that way.

"It doesn't make sense." l

Tim Harrison is the author of Wild Times, Tales From Urban Safaris. It can be purchased from Orange Frazier Press, www.orangefrazier.com.