BOSTON GLOBE (Massachusetts) 16 September 10 Man recoils after find: big snake in his home - Cambridge police remove 4-foot boa (L. Finch)
A Cambridge man received a slithering, scaly surprise Sunday morning when he discovered a 4-foot boa constrictor in his apartment, police said.
A landlord called police around 8:30 a.m. after her tenant discovered the heavy snake in his Sherman Street apartment, said Daniel Riviello, a spokesman for Cambridge police. The tenant told police that the red-tailed boa constrictor was not his and that he didn’t know how the creature managed to slink inside.
The man had left a window open in the first-floor apartment overnight, Riviello said.
“We have no idea how it got in,’’ said Riviello, who could not remember such a large snake ever being reported in Cambridge. “We’re assuming it crawled in through the window.’’
An animal control officer took the snake to the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals’ care and adoption center in Boston, where the cold, hungry reptile was placed into foster care with a staff member, said Brian Adams, a spokesman for the MSPCA.
The animal was probably a pet that escaped from its owner, but it is unknown how long the snake was roaming Cambridge, Adams said. Boa constrictors are unable to regulate their body temperature, so the warm apartment probably seemed inviting, he said.
“Most likely what occurred is the snake escaped from an enclosure and made its way outdoors,’’ Adams said. “Then as the temperature cooled, she made her way to a heat source, in this case a home.’’
The snake will be monitored over the next few days to make sure it is healthy, Adams said. If an owner does not come forward, it will be placed for adoption in the coming weeks, he said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the MSPCA at 617-522-5055.
Man recoils after find: big snake in his home