CHEWY the alligator has finally found a new home.

Charity workers at the Reptile Trust in Burnopfield, County Durham, have been looking for a home for the broad snouted cayman since she was seized at a pet shop in West Yorkshire last September.

She had been lined up to go to the Portuguese Algarve, but at the last minute, Customs and Excise officials scuppered the move in case Chewy was needed for court proceedings.

Now the rare animal is heading to a home at Stuttgart Zoo, in Germany, where a mate is waiting for the six-year-old.

Reptile Trust chief executive Peter Heathcote said that he gave the animal her name after she put up a toothsome fight while being restrained.

He said: "She was in a terrible state, but her toes and teeth have improved since she arrived with us."

Chewy has been kept behind laminated glass, and has attracted a number of visitors.

She will fly out to Germany in a special crate.