Missing Snake Success Stories, post yours here

[disgurlchar]

So, I thought it would be nice to have a thread where we could have stories shared about the successful recovery of escaped snakes.

I have a few to share over my 6 years of keeping snakes (please feel free to add your story(s) to this thread).

Story 1: Quazi, a snialoan milk snake squirmed out of her 10 gallon aquarium through a small gap in the lid to the tank. She was recovered a few hours after the discovery of her missing behind a bookshelf.

Story 2: Two garter snakes escaped from a make shift rubbermaid drawer thingy while I was cleaning their cages. Both were recovered within about 20 minutes in the corner of the room.

Story 3: Hazel, a classic corn snake, managed to wriggle out of the bin she was in. The gap between the rack and bin was just big enough (which I didn't think was possible). She was not to be found anywhere, I was losing hope and even started asking about a replacement for her since she has special breeding plans. I put up tape traps in a few locations, not expecting to be successful, but more as token to show a good faith effort. On the third day the tape right in front of the rack had something sticking to it, yes it was Hazel.

Story 4: Sandy (she now lives with Codymi and has a different name), a baby tessera corn snake was lost when one of my daughters didn't close a bin quite all the way. We discovered her missing the next day and found her hiding underneath the rack she was housed in. Total search time 5 minutes.

Story 5: Dee Dee an adult sinaloan milk snake (she was easy since she was a lot bigger than the little hatchlings from before). Stupid me opened the rack a crack for her to come say hi, she didn't come say hi, I moved on to checking on the other snakes to give her a few more minutes to come say hi, then spaced out closing the bin back. Next morning my wife calls and asks where did I put Dee Dee and I have a mini heart attack for my complete stupidity. She was found a few minutes after the search began behind a folding table in the corner of the room.

Story 6: The final and most dramatic of all my stories started 8 months ago on Sept 8, 2012. I had gotten a shipment of 3 baby corn snakes 2 days prior. I had them in deli cups while they were still so little. My daughters thought they were so cute and go down to peek at them (why don't they listen to the 7 day no touching/looking rule that I told them about?). They can't resist and pull the snakes out. They all get done having their fun and put the babies away. I go down the next day to put them in a better container for a more permanent residence and discover that the lid on this guy that hasn't even been named yet was only placed on the deli and not snapped on the deli. He is gone. I got pretty upset and banish the kids from all the snakes for a while to illustrate how important it is to secure the homes of these little curious wanderers (and then a few months later I produce story number 5). Anyways we tear everything apart, nothing. We set up tape traps, nothing. We wait a couple of weeks and tear everything apart again, something, a poop is found, but no snake. More time passes and trail goes cold. Every once in a while we do token searches but nothing results. Winter comes and I figure the little guy is tucked away somewhere enjoying a nice little nap and come spring will be the time that if we are going to have any luck that will be when we find him. More time passes and he starts to be forgotten. Spring comes and a memory of him comes and goes. Now if he's to be found it will be because he wants to be found and not because we are searching for him. Things go on as normal in every other aspect of life here, well as normal as we are, which for me isn't saying much. Then one hour and a half ago on today the 8th of May (8 months to the day), a bag is moved, and a snake plops out. At first it looks as if it's dead, or maybe a toy. A split second later it rights itself back to its belly, and then sees "predators". It is faced with the classic choice between fight or flight. He chooses flight and before he can make an escape he is grabbed and nabbed. So, number one lesson learned from this experience is, when you get a new snake, wait the whole 7 days (without cheating) before you handle your new pet. If you don't he or she will make you wait 8 months to have the pleasure.

This makes the recovery of rogue snakes 100% here at South Platte Serpents (most of that credit goes to my lovely wife). I wish all the rest of you luck in your endeavors to recover those missing snakes that you might be searching for and I look forward to reading your success stories too (I never completely lost hope in story number 6 because I have read some even more extreme stories from some of the others of this great community).

I really enjoyed reading this - you have very good writing skills. Glad everything went as well as it could. They are little devils aren't they

 

[Kat_Dog]

Two weeks after I got Riddle, I was sitting on the couch with him. He went and curl up into the sleeve if my jacket. 'No biggie', I thought, 'I'll be able to feel him leave.' NOPE!
When I got up, he wasn't there anymore! Then I searched for about an hour, I even cut the back of the couch to see if he was in there... My mom was not cooperative at all either, I asked her to put the dogs away and close the back door, she said no -_-

After about an hour, I went to the bathroom. I'm sitting there when I feel something tickling my foot... There was Riddle slithering out of my pants! xD
I have no idea where in my pants he was, but I'm extremely thankful I didn't crush him!

 

[Rhoney]

I too, lost only our first snake! It was my daughters Xmas present and she loved this new ball python! Well I checked on him and have him water... Then I closed the hing door on top but forgot to double check the latch.. It wasn't secure and sure enough over night he squeezed himself out of a very small gap! We turned the house upside down!!! Daughters mad that I lost the new pet! We set traps, put flour in all doorways plastic bags around every perimeter ...after 2 1/2 months we lost hope, thinking he got out of the chimney or curled up somewhere we'd never find him SO 2 and a half months later I send the girls out to wait for the bus, I'm in the window waiting for the bus to come...I look in his cage and sure enough, he's in there!!! Looking all innocent like nothing happened!! I thought he must be hungry.fed him, he ignored the rat completely! So he didn't come back because he was hungry!! Go figure!! I yelled for joy out the door to my girls and they went off to school happy Sirius was back!!

 

[Shramana]

After I had had my blizzard corn Shady for three months or so, she slipped out a tiny crack between her viv lid and the wall. She was missing for about 5 days and i had given up hope. The gap beneath the front door of the apartment my friends and I shared at the time was definitely big enough for her to get out, and I thought that she had either gone there or in the vent. I was really mad about it, but I'd already torn the apartment apart multiple times.

I was watching TV and reassuring myself that she would turn up, when I looked over at the couch and saw her little head peaking out from under one of the cushions. I scooped her up and put her back in her viv. After reading other posts I'm really glad she was only missing for 4 days, though at the time it felt like an eternity. My main concern was that she either went in the vent or would get into the old lady next door's apartment and give the woman a heart attack. Thankfully, she didn't wander too far.

 

[Rhoney]

This is a great subject! It is heart wrenching when you lose your beloved pet, but I am happy to know a lot of times they do turn up!! The other reassuring thing is that I'm NOT the only one it's happened to !! It is a learning lesson!!! I triple check all cages and bins now ! I just received a new snake with a screen lid.. I watered her, and checked the lock top... I was heading out.. Said to myself I know I locked all of them but went back in the house for a double check...sure enough, the screen was caved completely in due to my cat sitting on top infatuated with the newbie!! Well I spent the afternoon building and reinforcing that top !! Love the little sneakers!! Gotta double triple check em!!

 

[devante9901]

My husband found a baby Butler's garter snake in his auto shop in mid-November, and I spent a day researching and figuring out housing because we believed it was too cold for him to find a place to hibernate before he'd freeze to death. I ended up with a reptile tank with a sliding screen lid with a plastic clip on the back. The plastic edging is rigid, the clip holds the top on very well.

Day 1: No problems. He was apparently tired of his deli container and thrilled with the 5 gallon tank.

Day 2: I walk through the dining room, glance at the snake tank, and see the snake stretched out along the top, OUTSIDE the screen. How the heck?

His head was trapped between the lid and the plastic tank edge, as if he had become stuck trying to get back IN. (I suspect he got out, and the dog was there waiting to greet him, and he changed his mind) I was terrified I would find him half decapitated, but I pulled up the plastic clip, slid the lid aside, and he seemed to be okay.

There are 4 tiny slots on the back of the tank edging, and two notches, for hanging water bottles or some such, and I think he somehow he wedged his head in the notch and pushed hard enough to bend the plastic enough to squeeze through.

I "fixed" the cage by folding packing tape over the notches in hopes of smoothing out his ability to get leverage there. He diligently investigated the entire enclosure for a couple more days, then seemed to settle, and has been eating every other day for a about 3 weeks, and appears to be about to shed.

~SM 0.0.1 Butler's garter snake