Crocodile In Florida Undergoes Surgery To Remove Shoe From Its Stomach

A 10.5-foot-long Nile crocodile in Florida had to undergo a surgery recently after it ate a man's shoe.

The 350-pound crocodile named Anuket, who lives in St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park, swallowed the shoe in December 2020 after it slipped off the foot of a ziplining tourist and fell into the habitat where Anuket and another crocodile named Sobek lived, a social media post by the park mentioned.

The post said the team members observed Anuket swallow the shoe, regurgitate it and then swallow it again before they could retrieve it.

"Crocodilians explore their surroundings by biting and testing an item to see if it’s food, and they swallow their food whole. We waited and watched Anuket, hoping she would regurgitate the shoe again," the post read.

After weeks, the authorities decided to flush the shoe from the animal's stomach.

"This technique of stomach flushing is commonly used when crocodilians swallow an inedible item or during scientific research in the field to see what crocodilians have been eating. We flushed her stomach multiple times, massaged her abdomen to move the shoe, and even reached inside to try to find it. All of these measures were taken to avoid major abdominal surgery," it said.

Anuket was then taken to the University of Florida Veterinary Hospitals on Feb. 5 where zoo medicine resident Garrett Fraess attempted to remove the shoe by reaching his arm through the crocodile’s esophagus, but was unsuccessful, the university said in a Facebook post.

Finally, a surgery was conducted and Dr. Adam Biedrzycki surgically removed the shoe.

Anuket is now back at the zoo and recovering. However, zoo authorities said it will take sometime before she will be able to rejoin Sobek.

"There is no health insurance for zoo animals, so we depend on and are entirely grateful for the support of our guests. When you pay for your zoo admission, eat at our ToucanTina snack bar, reserve an animal encounter, zip the zoo on our Crocodile Crossing Zipline, buy a souvenir from our Gift Shop, you are helping us provide top quality medical care for all of our animals, including Anuket the Nile crocodile," the post read.