TRI-TOWN TRANSCRIPT (Danvers, Massachusetts) 01 October 09 Boxford boa on the loose (Brendan Lewis)

Boxford: A 5-foot-long boa constrictor is loose in East Boxford after it made a slippery escape into the plumbing of a Pye Brook Lane home in early September or August.

The snake owners on Pye Brook Lane did not report the red tail boa constrictor missing until last Saturday, a few days following a report of a large snake crossing the road in a nearby neighborhood.

Boxford Animal Control Officer Helen Phillips said there isn’t much she can do about the “freaky” incident until another sighting is reported.

Phillips said a member of the Turnquist family spoke to a dispatcher this past Saturday, September 26, and said that the pet had been missing for three weeks.

While the snake’s cage was being cleaned, Phillips said that the 5-foot long reptile had slipped into a toilet and through the plumbing in the house.

The family then called a plumber, who eventually spotted the boa constrictor inside the plumbing with a video camera that can navigate through pipes. But, by the time they cut the pipes open, the snake was gone.

“It is kind of a mystery,” said Phillips. “I don’t know how the snake got out of the drain pipe.”

The Animal Control officer said she had received a call about a large snake in the roadway last Thursday but said she typically does not respond to those incidents because the snake is usually gone by the time she gets there. Despite a description by the caller, she said that she could not confirm it was the missing constrictor.

Phillips said that a 5-foot long boa constrictor is a threat to both small dogs and cats in the area.

She added that boa constrictors can live for months without food but said it will die if it is not found before the temperature drops.

One Pye Brook resident said she would like the snake found for the family’s sake. She’s also fearful for some of her small pets.

“I’m not really pleased,” Theodora Massaro said.

Massaro found out about the loose constrictor when the Turnquist family was canvassing the neighborhood looking for the snake and letting others know about its escape.

The town of Boxford does not require that residents register pet snakes.

A member of the Turnquist family could not be reached as of deadline.
Boxford boa on the loose

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