Reptile & Amphibian Forums

SO its my birthday...
and my new little *tiny tiny* baby king is missing. He got out ot the tiniest little crack from me not shutting the top 100 percent tight. I am so upset. He is been out for as long as 48 hours since I last opened the cage 2 days ago after feeding him. I left him alone yesterday since I figured he was digesting, but when he didn't peek at me this morning, I peeked in...and no snake. FUDGE!
So yeah...the tank is in the main part of the house, 45 billion places to hide. Perfect access to over 500 square feet all stuffed with crap. I have put out a bottle trap, but since he just ate he won't be hungry yet will he?
I have 5 dogs and I am scared they will find him first. And he is sooo tiny. What chance do I have of finding him. Oh and he was on a shelf about 5 feet in the air....so he may be ingured to boot. Anyway..any suggestions for my birthday present of snake hunting?

I would seriously advise tearing your place apart. I have found almost every snake I have ever lost by looking for them as soon as possible. Don't give up hope, many of us have lost snake stories who turned up months later.

Oh, and I have 2 cats!

I have found escaped snakes that small, it takes patience, dedication, and you have to look EVERYWHERE in one day. In other words if you stop the search, the snake may move into a place you already checked....
The main things I suggest are the brightest flashlight you can get and something like a stick or a hanger to poke around in areas that are very hard to reach. When you search these types of areas make sure the light is showing as much as possible and watch for the slightest sign of movement.
Be very careful not to squash the snake during the search....it is easy to panic and start throwing furniture around the room,,,,,,,,be patient and be thorough.
I never find any logic in places escaped hatchlings end up. It just usually happens to be as most would think......dark and out of sight. Adults seem to have a bit of reason to thier choices, especially with heat but babies seem to settle down any old place.
Be determined. I had a Nelsoni who got out no less than 5 times in one year,,,,,,,,a master escape artist. I once found him inside a box that was inside another box. Inside a Box of Xmas lights no less which camoflauged him perfectly as if he knew the colors in that box would throw me off! If I had rushed I'd never have seen him but I did....
I suggest cheacking one corner of the room first and piling everything possible in that corner after you have gone through individual items. If you can not do the house in a day, stack things off the floor so the snake could not get into them.
Remember, a bright light is mandatory, and there's other hardcore things to try like [if your married or live at home this idea usually does not float] sprinking flour on the floor to watch for signs that the snake crawled through the area or make tape traps with some sticky tape. Peel of several feet and knot it up loosely in hopes the snake will get stuck on it.Cooking oil will unstick it easily. Also the pinky in the bottle trick can work, the snake may go inside the bottle eat the pinky and not crawl out...
Just try try try.......make traps and search.
Tom Stevens
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TomsSnakes.com

Sorry to hear of the lil escapee.i would rather look or "LISTEN for" a larger snake ,i have found lg king because they are like a bull in a china shop,i found that they cannot sliver by stacks of deli and pie cups without make a mess and a noisy one at that.Also check around at night with flashlight.C