Wally, the emotional support alligator, goes missing after being kidnapped

For years now, Wally Gator, the six-foot-long emotional support alligator, has been offering kindness to those in need, but now, his owner is asking for help as he’s gone missing.

While many wouldn’t expect an alligator to be an emotional support pet, Wally has grown to fame with thousands of Instagram followers and more than a million likes on TikTok .

However, Wally and his iconic harness aren’t able to give smiles and hugs at the moment, as his owner Joie Henney says he is missing in Georgia, where he was kidnapped, recovered, and released into a swamp, a post on the Wallygator Facebook page shared.

On Saturday, the page said that Wally was taken from his pen on April 21 while Henney was visiting friends in Brunswick, Georgia.

“Wally was stolen by some jerk who likes to drop alligators off into someone’s yard to terrorize them,” the account posted the following day. “Once discovered, they called [Department of Natural Resources], DNR then called a trapper. The trapper came and got Wally and dropped him off in a swamp with about 20 other alligators that same day.”

The Georgia DNR was able to confirm with NPR that a permitted trapper had responded to a “nuisance alligator call” on April 21 in Brunswick. The gator was then released “in a remote location.”

While the location of the swamp was not shared by the Facebook page, it is asking people to get in touch with Henney to aid in the search and “pray because we need a miracle.”

“The swamp is very large, and the trapper said the chances of them finding Wally is slim to none,” it continued. “But this is Wally ... Joie and friends are currently headed to the swamp to search and will continue daily.”

It was reported over the weekend that the alligator had been found, but a Sunday night update shared that it wasn’t true. The page also shared that they are posting a “reward” for anyone who can help find those responsible.

“Joie has also asked me to currently post a $1000 reward for information leading up to the conviction of the person who ‘helped’ Wally out of his enclosure,” the post said .

No update has been shared on Monday yet, though Henney shared on his personal account that he is thankful for the support.

“Wally is very important to me as well as to a lot of other people that he makes happy and puts joy in their hearts,” he wrote , alongside photos of the two of them.