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SUN-SENTINEL (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) 10 October 05 Loose python devours 18-pound Siamese cat near Miami-Dade home (Alva James-Johnson)
It had only been two days since Elidia Rodríguez had seen her Siamese cat, Francis. So when a Burmese python showed up Sunday in a wooded area behind her house in northwest Miami-Dade, the 66-year-old woman thought nothing of it.
That was until her son, Andres, noticed a peculiar bulge in the python's belly.
"I'm sure there's a cat in there," he said later.
It's the latest python incident in South Florida, where exotic snakes are proliferating and swallowing pets and other creatures whole. A 13-foot python recently gulped down a 6-foot alligator until its stomach ruptured, alarming public officials and citizens. And for residents like Rodríguez, Sunday's incident heightened concern.
On Sunday morning, Rodríguez was walking her dogs when she encountered the snake, which was 10 to 12 feet long, her son said.
He said his mother called him to the scene because he had caught snakes on the property before. He said he was trying to capture it when he noticed the bulge. That's when he decided to call 911. The Miami-Dade Fire Rescue anti-venom unit arrived and bagged the python about 11 a.m.
"It was a pretty good size animal, and it wasn't friendly, either," said Capt. Al Cruz.
He said when he tried to grab the python, it tried several times to bite him. He said the snake had several rows of about 100 teeth and could have inflicted a significant wound.
"I figured it hasn't been a pet snake for some time now, especially with the temperament that it had," he said
Cruz said the bulge in the python's stomach was about 15 to 16 inches, and he suspected it was the 18-pound cat.
"It was a full-size pet," he said. "I even felt the legs in the stomach."
He said the python was taken to A.D. Barnes Park in Miami, where it is on exhibit.
Andres Rodríguez said the cat was about a year old, and his mother had received it from a friend. When he told her that he thought the python had eaten her pet, he said, her eyes welled with tears.
He was still trying to decide how to break the news to his 6-year-old daughter, Nicole, who lives in Tampa. He said she had become close to the animal,and would be heartbroken.
Cruz said the anti-venom unit sees about three to four pythons a year roaming the streets of Miami-Dade County. He said they could be found from Miami Beach to Cutler Ridge.
"They are pets that people have that get away, or people release them," he said. He said a reptile 10 to 12 feet long can kill an adult or child through strangulation, but most won't unless they're confronted.
"The big problem is probably with small pets," he said.
Rodríguez said he caught a python behind the house five years ago and kept it in a cage, but it eventually died. He said the family has other pets, and he fears a python could strike again. "These things, I think, should be completely outlawed," he said.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-cpython10oct10,0,5062714.story?coll=sfla-news-broward&track=mostemailedlink
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