Feeding ducks at a pond is one of life’s simple pleasures. Sure, a lot of research says don’t feed them bread (despite what we did in our childhood), but switching to other duck-healthy foods isn’t that big of a deal. Still, what nobody has ever debated is whether or not to feed a wild alligator. As one Florida woman is about to find out, there is a reason we don’t feed animals with the ability to kill us.

In a wild YouTube clip, we get to see Florida’s finest on display. The video starts off with a woman on some sort of body of water, crouched down with her hands near the water. In most of the United States, this isn’t all that big of a deal. What makes this act terrifying, however, is that she is in Florida.

Florida, aside from being home to some crazy people, is also home to one of the largest predators in the Western Hemisphere—the American alligator. American alligators (or gators, for short) are well-known creatures and usually rank quite high on the “No Way I’m Getting Near That Animal” list. This woman, however, spurns all wise knowledge and decides she knows what’s best.

More than just approaching the gator, the Florida woman is clearly doing something extra. In fact, she isn’t just saying hello to a wild alligator in a pond, she seems to be feeding it. As she gets down on her hands and knees, she begins tossing food to the deadly animal that could at any moment bite off an extremity.

In what seems to be a familiar relationship, the woman and the alligator get quite close, with the woman tossing little bits of food into the gator’s open mouth. Then, as we all would expect, the alligator gets just a bit too close, and the woman starts yelling.

There is a reason we don’t feed animals, like

alligators

, with the ability to kill us.

©Michael O’Keene/Shutterstock.com

Inching closer, the gator gives a few preemptory snaps of its jaws, trying to show that it wants more food, and it wants in. Incredibly, in a show of bravery that only a Florida woman could muster, the woman gets closer to the gator and audibly yells at it to go away.

Somehow, the woman is able to leave the situation without a scratch, although the relationship with her alligator friend seems to have been damaged. Unfortunately, situations where humans feed potentially deadly animals like this happen all over the world, and the results are usually bad.

Now, it is possible that this alligator will approach other humans, hoping for food since it has been fed before. If that happens enough, it is very likely that this gator will be removed and possibly euthanized as a potential threat to other humans. It wouldn’t be the alligator’s fault, although it would be the one to bear the consequences of the situation.

Feeding a wild alligator without a way to keep your distance probably isn’t the best idea.

©Peter Aronson/Shutterstock.com

What is the moral of the story? Don’t feed animals that can hurt other humans. Otherwise, you may end up having the animal killed instead!