The giant albino python. Right: Austin Animal Center rescuers with the giant snake.
It’s not an everyday occurrence to find a giant snake roaming around your neighborhood…for months.
Well, it seemed to be a common situation for some Texas residents before the Austin Animal Center rescued a 16 ft. long python from a house garage.
The municipal shelter received a call on Monday, December 19, regarding a giant python that some residents were able to catch due to the low temperatures that made the snake lethargic.
The animal was kept inside a home’s garage until professional experts arrived to get it.
"When we get calls about danger noodles, a lot of times the size of the snake is exaggerated," a Facebook post by the Austin Animal Center reads. "We get it! Spotting a nope rope [snake] in the wild can be scary. But when Officer Moorman arrived at the residence, he was indeed greeted by an unhappy 16 ft. long albino reticulated python."
Staff members with the giant snake.Austin Animal Center | Facebook
According to the shelter, residents had been spotting the giant animal wandering and roaming around the neighborhood as early as July.
After being taken by the officer, the snake was put in temporary housing before asking the Austin Zoo to take care of the animal and give it a more appropriate environment.
"You might think that’s the end of the story, but we had a couple of staff members who remembered seeing a lost/found post for a large albino snake a few months ago," the Facebook post reads.
A former staff member was later contacted by shelter employees and helped them locate a Nextdoor post that had the snake owner’s contact information in the comment section. The man identified a unique feature of the animal, and he picked his pet up the next day.
To add to the story, the Austin Animal Center shared that the snake’s owner was traveling from Dallas to Austin with his pet, Snow, inside a tote before his car was broken into and the bag was stolen.
"Oh, to see the look on the thief’s face when they opened it up," the shelter staff wrote.
After months, the python is now safe and reunited with its owner in Austin, TX.