Help!!!!!! Snake stuck in cold car

[ODoyle90]

My roommate went with his young RTB to get something out of his car, and his snake crawled into a small gap in the dashboard. He is now stuck in the internals of the car. It is currently 30 degrees where I live and I don't know how long he can last.

Can anyone offer any advice on how to get him out? So far we have a pot of hot water by the pedals and a thawed rat to try and lure him out. We are very worried and need some help

[ODoyle90]

Update:

We got an extension cord and have the heat lamp up to the dashboard. The car is stripped of everything that can come off. Still haven't seen him, but we also put a hide in case he finds the heat... If he's even still alive

[notmyfault]

sad to hear that, hope he's okay. Keep us posted. Maybe you could lure him out with some food. Braining his prey and leaving it under the heat lamp might bring him out of hiding.

[Skittles1101]

Why would you ever take a snake outside in 30 degree weather for any reason??

Like others have suggested, try luring out with food. I wish the bst for this poor critter, he sure won't last long in 30 degree weather

[VEXER19]

When I first got my BP, my wife put her on the dash board and she crawled in between the window and the dash and went behind the dash and I had to pull off the dash to get her out. But obviously if you take any snake into 30 degree weather they are going to go where it is warm and that is near the heater and the engine. I hope your RTB is alright. Personally I had to poke my with sticks at the worst angles to get her out. Most cars the RTB wont be able to go any where except inside the dash on top of things like your vents and steering column and cd player. So eventually you would think that it would crawl out on its own. Sorry to hear this and I hope everything went well and you knew the RTB couldnt get into the engine so you should have drove the car with the RTB in it to a garage or someplace warm until you got it out. Obviously its too late for this post, but for future reference I guess.

[ODoyle90]

GREAT NEWS!!! So, my roommate went to leave this morning at 8 to go to the car shop to get the dash taken apart. When he got into his car, he saw poor Achilles (snake) hanging out from under the glove compartment. Completely convinced he was dead, he brought him inside. When my roommate was petting the freezing cold RTB, his tongue slipped out. We immediately soaked him in warm water and put him back in the tank. I also got my own heat bulb to bump up the heat even more.

As of now, Achilles is still basking, but his tongue is much more active and he has moved around. He will be left alone for at least a week to let him get over some of the shock, but it is looking as good as it can for the time being.

Obviously, taking him outside was an ill-advised decision. He really does take great care of his snake, so let's keep the negatives off any future posts and celebrate the fact that this gorgeous reptile is still with us.

Thanks for the replies!

[Skittles1101]

Make sure he checks for signs of a respiratory infection for the next couple months...congrats on finding the poor little guy

[kitedemon]

yes keep a close watch for RI it is a possibility.

[Skittles1101]

And be sure you don't overheat the poor fellow! Overheating is just as bad, if not worse than freezing. Overheating can cause permanent neurological damage....

[notmyfault]

Great to hear, hope he'll be okay.

Sent from my DROIDX