Escaped snake...you guys must get tired of these threads.

I tried searching for "escape" and "escaped," but I didn't find anything very useful.

Here's the situation: My 1.5 year old BP got out of her tank overnight and has been missing for about 10 days now. She had not been fed for almost a week prior to that. Of course, I checked everywhere for her. There is evidence in the dust patterns that she was under the fridge at one point, but no sign of her now.

I tried leaving a mouse out under a hide for her, but that didn't work. We have a very curious cat who may have scared her away. :( We also have a dog but she gives not a second thought to the snake. We have baseboard heaters, which are pretty easy to see under, so we've been checking around those everywhere in the house a few times every day. No luck.

Any tips and tricks for finding an escapee? I know they can go off their food for a while in the winter and survive, but I just want to find her alive. :( It's cold outside and not especially humid.

I'm sorry you're going through this, it really freaks me out when snakes go missing.


Check in the LITTLEST nooks and crannies, especially the ones that light have some sort of heat source, cause that's where BPs like to go. You could try making some sort of enclosure, something covered with a heat pad under it in a secure looking corner that she might seek out to sleep in.

I really hope she turns up.

I have nothing to offer but my sympathies. I really hope you find her alive and well. *hug*

two tricks, one harmless, one potentially dangerous:


the first one would be to put something in the doorways that will reveal if the snake changes rooms. like domino stones or domino stones or sugar cubes, a line of them, you just need to be careful not to step on it or rebuild it when you do. or make a thin line of rice using rulers. that can reveal if the python changes rooms, and in which direction.


the second is more radical.... make a trap with a wood panel and double-sided tape. or any other panel, whats important is that the double-sided tape sticks to the panel really firmly and solidly.... but this is risky. Best case would be to check the trap really often (several times each day) and one day she will hang in there. But i guess too much can go wrong, theoretically it works, but it can damage the skin and the snake can get into really dangerous and helpless positions and cannot get free. I guess this only makes sense when venomous snakes escape into a home.

But its still something to keep in mind, snakes can get badly stuck to sticky things, especially tape.

keep searching, dont give up. straightforward searching with some rice or whatever to see if she changed rooms is probarbly the way to go.

and put out water bowls, she can survive long without food but without water it becomes a race against time. Dehydration is a big risk and she is probarbly looking for water right now.

ive been writing too much, what i really want to say, the most important thing is...

put water bowls in every room. and check them because she must show up there. No alternative.

If it's cold out, she's going to seek warmth. Check anywhere that there may be warmth (floor heaters, appliances running, etc). Also, this may sound silly, but get down on her level. As you are laying on the floor, look around for small, dark, warm cubby holes that she might slither into. That's where she's going to be.

Lock up the cat in a room she can't get into until you find her. That's a bad situation waiting to happen. In the meantime, fix the security of her tank. Good luck.

The fridge has tight spots you need to check.

A snake with find something warm and chill there for a while. Anything heated by being powered on is a good bet. Cable boxes, refrigerators, heater, etc

But also they will hide during the day just to feel secure.

I would break your house down into small quadrants, search one as if you were a corrections officer looking for contraband In a jail cell. If a room is bigger, break it down to sides of walls and everything in the middle. Go from top to bottom or bottom to top. The main thing is that you look at and through everything!

Good luck finding her!

Thanks for your replies everyone. Still looking for her.

I would NOT put anything sticky down as previously mentioned. That's got bad news written all over it, it will hurt your snake if it gets stuck. Check tight, dark places. Check high, and low. Look where you would least expect it to be. Put out a heat source with a hide, and maybe a rodent out. You can do the flour on the floor for a tell tale trail. Good luck finding him.

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I had my snake disappear on me for roughly two weeks. It was my own fault, I was spacey and forgot to secure the cage properly after feeding him. I laid all of these traps, and hides with heat sources, and in the end I woke up two weeks later to a dog hogging the bottom half of the bed, a dog hogging the pillow and a snake curled under my chin. I'm partially grateful I don't scare easily, and don't roll in my sleep.

Although I do admit that I kept my door shut tight so I was fairly secure with the knowledge that the snake hadn't left the room. However, I did not pull the entire room apart like a madman, because the snake is still pretty small and I didn't want to unconsciously squash him, I only looked in the obvious nooks and crannies. My room looks like a tornado lives there.

A few things I found that people have used:

• Flour trail (already mentioned) but people have also used pennies (I have no idea who has that many pennies laying around, but hey), sand, sticks, crinkled newspaper.
• Create a small box hide with a small low watt heater on the ground in a corner of the room (try to lure with prey here as well overnight, he could pull a snag and run, but at least you know he's there and eating)(already mentioned)

Or place a live prey in a critter keeper on the floor, (the snake wouldn't be able to eat it, but it would get the snakes attention.)

• Keep your ears open in the evenings (8pm-10pm-ish) in case you hear something
• Keep an eye on pets in case they pick up on the snake (dogs, cats, heck, even pet birds will alert call)
• Keep doors shut as you search, (already mentioned) as you compartmentalize, make it harder for the snake to move to an already checked area
• Check under heaters, fridges, ovens, even washing machines/dryers/on top of hot water pipes if you think the snake had access (already mentioned) I'd even check couch or seat cushions in the furniture.
• Although its very unlikely, it has happened that Bp's have been found lodged between the wall and a bookcase or dresser
• The snake could very well find you before you find it. :P

They will want somewhere warm. If you have a rack try behind any other tubs. Also remember they can fit in a much smaller place than you think they can.

don't just look low, also check high spots, I once found my escapee in the space between the top of the dishwasher and the countertop. The only way I found him was taking out the screws and actually pulling out my dishwasher. Good Luck I hope you find him.

you may want to look under the stove if yall cook a lot