Gator GoPro: Handler Wrestles 10ft Alligator

By Mark Hodge @Mrhodgey

A FEARLESS handler wrestles a 10ft alligator with his BARE HANDS

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Videographer / Director: Jason Alan Mcdonald

Producer: Nick Johnson

Editor: Joshua Douglas, Kyle Waters

Jason McDonald wore a GoPro as he caught Bertha, the 500 lbs female gator at the Colorado Gator Farm in Colorado, USA.

Risky business: Jason inspects the face of an injured gator - but has never been injured by the massive beasts himself

Jumping on top of the powerful animal and using his weight to hold her down, Jason, 34, even opened the giant reptiles’ mouth before an awe-struck crowd.

Tie em up cowboy: Jason, who works in a cemetory, uses a rope to restrain a big gator

Jason, who treats and cares for the rescued animals, said he became involved with Colorado Gators 10 years ago, when he signed up for a wrestling class in his early twenties.

Gator-aid! A reptile gets some much needed aid from its handler

He said: “I wanted to get a pet gator and I had heard that the farm offered classes.

“I really enjoyed the rush I felt catching them and the experience of helping treat them for wounds and seeing them recover.

“While we don't breed gators, we have saved over 200 and currently have a population of around 400.”

Snap: Jason gets up close with Bertha, a massive 10ft gator

Colorado Gators started out as a fish farm, but in 1987 they decided to buy 100 baby gators, as a means of disposing of guts and carcasses.

Jason's work at the farm is in stark contrast to his day job as a crematory manager.

Jason, who treats and cares for the rescued animals, said he became involved with Colorado Gators 10 years ago, when he signed up for a wrestling class in his early twenties

And the Colorado native, who has never sustained a serious injury from handling gators, insists he prefers catching the big animals compared to the more mobile smaller ones.

A 10ft female gator called Bertha becomes agitated as an alligator handler approaches

He said: “The bigger gators the less flexible and much slower as they have more mass to move.

Main attraction: Jason demonstrates his gator handling skills in front of a crowd

“Bertha is one of the original gators we got from Florida and she is extremely large – with the average size for a female being around eight foot.

Toothy tiddler: the wrestler poses proudly with a baby alligator

“We have geothermal wells that keep the water hot - that's the reason we can have gators in one of the coldest places in the US – and it's also why we have such big and healthy gators.”