They say “everything’s bigger in Texas,” and that was certainly the case for neighbors who found a snake that had been lurking in Coronado Hills in Austin, Texas, for the last few months.
It must have been quite a sight to see the giant yellow and white python cruising the neighborhood, but several neighbors worked together to corral the creature — which was sluggish due to the cold — and call authorities, realizing this was no native reptile.
The Austin Animal Center (AAC) posted about the incident and revealed the storied past of the giant snake.
“When we get calls about danger noodles, a lot of times the size of the snek is exaggerated,” the post stated. “We get it! Spotting a nope rope in the wild can be scary. But when Officer Moorman arrived to the residence, he was indeed greeted by an unhappy 16 ft long albino reticulated python.”
Locals had been seeing the python since July, but hadn’t managed to capture it until this week as it slowed down due to the temperature.
The AAC held the snake overnight, but the next day they made arrangements to have it moved on to the Austin Zoo, which had better accommodations for the large reptile.
But then someone remembered something: A lost post for a giant python that had been posted somewhere online earlier in the year.
A snake this big and bright had to have been a pet, and a former AAC staff member with a good memory was able to backtrack and find the original post that had detailed the loss of a very similar snake.
“Looking for a 16 foot reticulated Python named snow,” the original post said, according to screenshots shared by the AAC.
“She was stolen out of my vehicle in her travel tote. I’m sure whoever broke in my vehicle panicked and freaked out realizing it was a snake inside. She is a big gentle giant. I have a cash reward for whoever helps bring her home to me. She was stolen 2 weeks ago.”
“You’re thinking this story can’t get any more fascinating, right?” the AAC’s post continued. “Well, this snek’s owner had just been VISITING Austin from the Dallas area — with his ol’ pal Snow in a tote in his vehicle. His car was broken into and the tote was stolen. Oh to see the look on the thief’s face when they opened it up…”
Clearly, the thief wasn’t interested in taking the snake, and the snake lived her life in the Austin area until her capture. It was a good thing she was caught when she was, too, because Thursday will see some of the coldest temperatures of the year in Austin — lows in the teens which likely would have killed the snake.
The AAC said they contacted the man from the post and he was able to list a few particulars about the snake that matched up. He drove to Austin the following day and reclaimed his precious pet, just in time for Christmas.
“Anyway, this story has a very happy ending,” the post concluded. “Snow has been reunited with her owner and Coronado Hills no longer has to be on the lookout for a giant python!”
