A man on a motorcycle was driving down a quiet country lane in the UK when he suddenly saw a 10-foot-long snake slither across the road right in front of him. He was shocked as it wasn’t exactly a common occurrence, and immediately knew the snake must have been abandoned.
Not knowing what else to do, he contacted the police, who then called the RSPCA for help. When RSPCA inspector Justin Stubbs arrived at the scene, he saw that the huge snake had slithered up into a tree. The poor snake was obviously scared and confused and had just been looking for a safe place to hide.
There were probably a lot of cars passing by before Stubbs arrived, and they were all undoubtedly astonished and utterly perplexed to find a large snake hanging out in a nearby tree.
On a news release, Stubbs remarked, “I truly could not believe it when I arrived there and saw this gigantic snake all the way up in the tree – it was a scenario a little like ‘The Jungle Book’.” “When I first noticed the snake perched high in the branches, I realized it would be challenging to bring him down owing to his height, the difficulty of getting to him, and the requirement for additional personnel given the size of the snake.
The rescue team worked together to carefully remove some of the branches surrounding the snake so that he would be easier to reach. Once they had clear access, they cut the branch the snake was resting on and he and the branch fell into a large tarp held out by rescuers below.
Once the snake was safely out of the tree, Stubbs wrapped him up in a duvet cover and quickly took him to a local specialist to get checked out and taken care of.
“The snake is about 10 [feet] long and a reticulated python,” Stubbs said. “We think he or she may have been loose for some time as they were cold and a little underweight. I’ve rescued hundreds of animals from trees over my 25 years with the RSPCA, cats, birds, foxes, and I’ve been called to many snakes, but I wasn’t expecting to see this stunning animal wrapped high up around tree branches in the English countryside!”
Once the snake was being cared for, everyone thought the excitement was over — until four days later, when another python was found slithering around in the exact same area as the first one.
When Stubbs received the call informing him that another person had been discovered in almost the same location, he remarked, “I couldn’t believe it.” It appears probable that these sad creatures were abandoned or that they both fled from the same location, so I’m afraid it’s no coincidence.
The snake’s companion was promptly located and saved. Because the second snake hadn’t considered climbing a tree for protection, saving him was much simpler than saving the first.
“This second snake was extremely cold when he was found, very much thinner than the first python, which is suffering from a minor health condition,” Stubbs said. “Both snakes are now being looked after at a specialist facility and are under heat lamps to maintain a healthy body temperature.”
While the RSPCA is relieved that they were around to rescue the lost snakes, they’re also hoping there are no more on the loose. The snakes are now safe in the care of people who know how to look after them, and will never have to worry about hiding in trees or slithering across roads ever again.
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