The Mysterious Disappearance of Veruca...

[Lolo76]

On Saturday morning I was getting ready for work around 10am, and briefly checked on a few of my snakes. One was Veruca the Stimson's Python, who was frantically trying to push open her tub... so I popped it open for a minute, and then closed the lid and pushed it back into the rack. Again, this was a LIDDED tub inside of a 5-shelf rack, from which none of my snakes have ever escaped. I got home from work around 8pm, and went back to check the snake tubs, mostly because I smelled something funky. Turned out the funky smell was coming from a garbage bag, but when I opened Veruca's tub she was gone!

Sooooo, how the heck did she escape from a lidded tub in a rack?? Two possibilities I'm thinking: Either I was so sleepy (10am is early for me, lol) that I didn't notice she slipped out while I had the lid popped, or I didn't close it enough to "lock," and she managed to push it open JUST enough to squeeze herself out. Bottom line, she has now been missing for almost 48 hours, and I've given up on trying to find her. I looked in all the usual spots, like in/under the snake racks, under the bed, dressers, etc, but she could literally be anywhere by now. She isn't very big, maybe 500-600g, so there could be a myriad of tiny spaces for her to hide.

Hopefully she will show up on her own, or one of my cats/dog will alert me to her hiding place. Of course, I'm also worried one of my cats will find and hurt or kill her first. Not worried about the dog since he's trained to ignore the snakes (and does), and it's unlikely the 14 or 17yo cats will bother... but my 6yo would definitely hunt a loose snake, especially one that small. My other concern is that she escaped outside, since I often have the balcony door open this time of year, but I haven't spotted her anywhere in the vicinity yet. Any suggestions on finding the little sucker, or thoughts on how she escaped? Not much I can do at this point, but the mystery is really bothering me!

[Lolo76]

P.S. How long would a snake of that size & species survive outside of her tub? It won't start getting cool here until probably mid-late October, and then it will only drop below 50ish at night. She had just eaten about two days prior to her disappearance, and usually eats a f/t mouse or two every 7-14 days.

[bcr229]

If she's warm she could go a few months without needing to eat. OTOH she will need water. I had one of mine get loose, he was missing for six weeks, and I found him when I walked into the snake room because I'd put a bowl of water on the floor. He was getting a drink. Once he finished I scooped him up, put him back in his tub, and thawed a rat for him - which he ripped out of the tongs.

[frostysBP]

I had a corn get out on me and was gone for a year then. One day picking up laundry boom there he was and double his size. But i have heard of people doing lot of things... making a hide with a hot spot, putting a rat in a cage on the floor to try and draw out a for a feeding. Flour on the floor. Good luck and dont be scared to look higher up than you think

[Marrissa]

My last snake escape was during winter in our unheated and non insulated apartment. I'd say the temp inside was 50-60F. She was gone for I think five days before I found her above the non working (no heat and super drafty in the wall too) heater inside the wall. Since it's summer, she should do just fine. I tried the flour, live mouse bait, heat mat with hide on top, running a heater on low near the mice to warm up that area and push the mice smell around, plastic bags around the walls so I could hear if she went across them, etc. Found her by sheer dumb luck of her falling on top of the heater in the wall from wherever she was climbing to inside the wall. I happened to be in the living room and heard the thud and saw her bit of white and nose poking through the gap.

Best of luck! Crazy things happen and don't lose hope!

[Lolo76]

Thanks for the replies! I haven't given up all hope of finding her, just had to give up actively searching - otherwise that will take up all of my free time, given my obsessive nature and her small size. I do have a water bowl and her (open) tub on the floor near her rack, so hopefully that will lure her out at some point. I also put a critter keeper with two of my live mice on the floor that first night, but can't leave them (or even a thawed mouse) out for long, due to my cats and dog trying to get them. Anyway, I'll let you know if she ever turns up! So far, no sign of her yet.