Seriously doubt your gator will stay only in your pond,they tend to move around during mating season and during low water dry times,there are actually the American Alligator,American Crocodile,and Camans in the USA.
They have hunting seasons in Florida and Louisiana (where I used to live,worked offshore on a drilling rig also)They will eat anything they can get a hold of and love small dogs,I knew gator hunters in Louisiana that kept yappy little dogs on the boat for that reason.I wouldn't trust one nomatter what anybody tells you,I'm also surprised one would survive a winter in Kentucky,several have been found frozen in Northern Ky over the years.
I've got pictures of kids riding their big wheels on the road near Pecan Island,La along a canal with 12 and 14 foot gators sunning close to the road,guess them folks were awful trusting around there,either that or they enjoyed making babies to feed the local gators.