Help, lost snake!

[ashleynicole]

Our 2011 mexican milk snake was discovered missing Friday. I feed them on the weekends so that's when I noticed him missing. My husband and I tore the house apart looking for them. We checked everywhere that we could think of including around and under all of the appliances. Friday night I left a pinky out in the room he is in which is adjacent to the garage so I also left a pinky in the garage as well. This 'family' type extra room has a door to the garage and opens into the kitchen so I left a 3rd pinky in the kitchen by the refrigerator. I left heat pads in all 3 areas with hides on them. Saturday morning all pinkies were still there so I fed them to some of my other snakes. I figured every 2-3 days I will leave pinkies out because I have a 7 year old corn that will eat anything so I will just feed them to him so they don't go to waist. Tonight as I was searching again before laying the pinkies out I found a shed sticking out under the threshold between the garage and this room. I could just barely see the tail sticking out so I pulled and it is an entire shed. I am hoping that he shed and is hungry now. I unscrewed the threshold and pulled it up hoping to find him there but he wasn't under it.
Anyway I put the pinkies out the same way, one in the room by the door and one in the garage on the other side of the door. Each has a heat pad and a terracotta pot next to hit for a hide box. I stuck a knife in the pinkies to make them bleed hoping to draw him out. This was one of our favorite snakes so if anyone can give me any more advice on how to find him please please please let me know.


We've had snakes for 8 years and this is only the fourth time one has ever gotten lost and we've always found them....

[Wildside]

Good luck!

[ashleynicole]

might I mention that the cage was locked, so this snake is a real escape artist. This is my smallest snake and he was in a 5 gallon tank with a screen top and clamps. I should've known better. My other small snakes are all in 10 gallon tanks with lids that lock down inside the tank and my big colubrids are in 20 gallon long tanks with clamps on all 4 sides and they've never gotten out this way.

I am not an irresponsible owner. I feel like people might think I am irresponsible. I usually check the water on my snakes every day when I feed the bearded dragon but I don't always open the lids .... sometimes I just pour water through the screen top into the bowls. We handled all of the snakes in the middle of last week so he can't have been out that long.....
I am just really tore up about this...

[Wildside]

It happens to the best of us. You don't need to prove yourself to anybody, especially on the internet. If someone judges you by your first post as irresponsible then they clearly just don't have a good understanding of what herping is all about. While there are 8 billion preventative measures you can take to try and avoid mishaps, the worst mistake you can make is underestimating the unpredictability that comes with owning reptiles. Good luck with your search.

[ashleynicole]

It happens to the best of us. You don't need to prove yourself to anybody, especially on the internet. If someone judges you by your first post as irresponsible then they clearly just don't have a good understanding of what herping is all about. While there are 8 billion preventative measures you can take to try and avoid mishaps, the worst mistake you can make is underestimating the unpredictability that comes with owning reptiles. Good luck with your search.

Thanks, that makes me feel a little better... I keep checking on the pinkies every so often, I can't sleep... now that I find a shed and know the little guy is still in the house I am anxious to find him. He is so tiny for all I know he could be inside the walls. I've got my poor cat locked in my room on the other end of the house, the dog is in her crate for the night....

[TinkerbellsMom]

I hope you find him :( mice dipped in chicken broth really attracts my bp

[ashleynicole]

No luck last night. I will try the chicken broth tonight I guess.... :(

[Lankyrob]

Make sure the broth has no salt in it :)

[Wildside]

I have a suggestion:

If you're trying to bait him out you need to put the food in a closed container. Make a hole just big enough for him to squeeze in and eat. That way he won't be able to squeeze back out with a full belly. Try putting it near where you found the shed.

[MrBD1980]

^^^^

Although I've not needed to construct one I believe many people have had success using a bottle trap...

Found this link which may help...good luck!

Video: How to Build a Funnel Snake Trap | eHow.com (http://www.ehow.com/video_4950657_build-funnel-snake-trap.html)

Brian

[ashleynicole]

Thanks, I will have to google snake traps, I don't have the patience to watch videos.

[TalonNC]

Any news? Kinda curious if the little guy was ever found.

[ashleynicole]

nope, no news, We have a feeling he got outside. The house we are renting was built in the 70's and although the landlord remodeled it before renting it out, there are lots of places a snake can get through. The door to the garage doesn't seal very well and there are a few places the garage door doesn't seal well, I can see how he could've gotten outside very easily. The good part is milk snakes are native to florida, the bad news is, we really liked that snake.. :(

[Wildside]

The minute you give up on finding him is when you find him, probably in some really absurd place :)

[maximus30576]

Found one of mine under the drawer in my dresser , so check all the drawers and pull them all the way out ..You just never know where they will pop up ..

[ashleynicole]

yeah I know he could still turn up, but I am not stressing about it anymore. He is small, born in 2011, native snake so he won't cause any environmental issues. If I find him great, if not then he is free, maybe he will take up residence in my yard and I will find him out there at some point, just gotta make sure I don't mistake a coral snake for him...

[ashleynicole]

ok, so no, I did not find the milk snake yet, but I have to share something ironic.

Today as I was looking for shoes in our living room coat closet, I found our newest snake, a 2012 florida king snake, curled up under a jacket that had fallen onto the floor. I didn't even know he was missing because all of the snakes were in their cages when I checked last night!

Turns out my husband decided to upgrade him from his rubbermade tub to .... deep breath now... the SAME 5 gallon tank with screen top that the 2011 mexican milksnake escaped from!!!!

The kingsnake is back in his rubbermade tub and that 5 gallon tank with screen top will not be used for snakes ever again...

[maximus30576]

Wow !!! Glad your not looking for 2 snakes now ...

[ashleynicole]

Wow !!! Glad your not looking for 2 snakes now ...

tell me about it, :rolleyes: we have kept snakes for 8 years and I can count on one hand every escape we have had, and there were none in the last 3-4 years, but we haven't had babies in a long time and I guess we just forgot how small of an area they can get through. I mean I know wherever their head can fit they body can follow but my husband said he didn't think the kingsnake would be able to get out of the 5 gallon because he is fatter and his head is bigger than the milksnake. I am going to stick with rubbermade tubs until they are big enough for a 20 gallon long.

[Wildside]

ok, so no, I did not find the milk snake yet, but I have to share something ironic.

Today as I was looking for shoes in our living room coat closet, I found our newest snake, a 2012 florida king snake, curled up under a jacket that had fallen onto the floor. I didn't even know he was missing because all of the snakes were in their cages when I checked last night!

Turns out my husband decided to upgrade him from his rubbermade tub to .... deep breath now... the SAME 5 gallon tank with screen top that the 2011 mexican milksnake escaped from!!!!

The kingsnake is back in his rubbermade tub and that 5 gallon tank with screen top will not be used for snakes ever again...

http://gifsforum.com/images/image/facepalm/grand/facepalm-eccbc87e4b5ce2fe28308fd9f2a7baf3-1158.jpg

[ashleynicole]

haha, that picture is exactly how I felt!

[maximus30576]

http://gifsforum.com/images/image/facepalm/grand/facepalm-eccbc87e4b5ce2fe28308fd9f2a7baf3-1158.jpg

Oh man i just died laughing when i seen this pic ..

[Drgnfly2265]

That pic made me laugh! Glad you got thhe second one back.

[MoreliAddict]

So now we're at 5 missing snakes in 8 years? lol

[Wildside]

So now we're at 5 missing snakes in 8 years? lol

I've got a higher record than that on account of the significant other's facepalmable actions.

[ashleynicole]

So now we're at 5 missing snakes in 8 years? lol

no, 5 escapes in 8 years not 5 missing snakes in 8 years. And only one permanently lost

1. cleaning ball python cage, did not secure lid when I put him back in, came back to lid popped off and ball python on floor.
2. found baby corn snake in my underwear drawer (didn't even know she was out!)
3. Cleaning the garage, went inside and left garage open, neighbor comes to my back door "There is a huge red snake in the front yard", run out front and it was our okatee corn, apparently I knocked the lid lose while cleaning. (neighbor didn't know we had pet snakes and screamed when I picked it up and said, "oh it's mine".. the look on her face.. priceless :) )
4. mexican milk (we have sinced moved out of that house and never did find the little guy) I did find another one of his sheds in the garage so I am pretty sure he just got outside which is ok since milks are pretty common in florida.
5. florida kingsnake, which we did find, and we gave away to a fellow herp lover that really wanted that snake.

I am not proud of any of the above. They are all valuable learning experiences to NOT let it happen again.