KATY, TEXAS — Gabriela Smith and her husband discovered a small alligator in their backyard pool in the Cinco Ranch community of Katy, Texas, on Tuesday afternoon. The couple removed the animal and released it into a nearby pond.

Smith and her husband used a pool skimmer to chase the alligator around the water. They caught it in the skimmer net, but the alligator escaped multiple times before they were able to lift it from the pool and transport it to the pond.

The encounter followed a series of alligator sightings in the Houston area. An alligator was seen wandering the streets of Cinco Ranch earlier this month. In the Sienna community, a large alligator was spotted walking through the neighborhood over the weekend, and another was observed crossing the street on Sunday morning. Earlier this month, alligators were also seen at an elementary school and on a golf course in Sienna.

According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, gator season and nesting season continues through the end of May. Most alligators naturally avoid people and will usually retreat when approached. Alligators basking near ponds or streams are often just regulating their body temperature and not necessarily hunting.

If an alligator hisses, it is a warning that a person is too close and should slowly back away, the agency advises. Any alligator that approaches people, comes out of the water toward humans or lingers near homes could be considered a nuisance animal.

Pet owners are urged to keep animals leashed and away from the water because alligators may see them as an easy food source, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife. People should never attempt to move an alligator seen in a roadway and should instead contact local authorities. Feeding alligators is illegal in Texas and can cause the animals to lose their natural fear of humans.