Reptile & Amphibian Forums

My kingsnake is still lost in my apt. I've tried just about everything.

My issue is that my landlord doesn't know that I have her. At what point should I tell them and what kind of repercussions can they take against me?

I've had her for 6 years now and never had this problem before.

She is nice, docile snake but I'm afraid of how my neighbors and landlord will react.

I've read the stories of snakes reappearing after months and I was hoping that would happen but as time goes on (and I've ripped apart my apt 3x) I'm finding myself more worried.

1. Don't take any legal advice from me

2. If you tell, you are guilty of breaking whatever rule was broken, and neighbors that hate snakes will make a big deal of the matter, leading the manager to take some sort of action or reprimand anyway.

3. If you don't tell, you aren't punished unless found out. If the snake is never seen again you aren't in trouble. If you find the snake, you aren't in trouble. If a neighbor finds it and makes a big deal, it still may not be connected to you.

4. Seems like you have less of a chance of being in trouble with point #3. Politicians do it all the time.

5. Don't listen to my advice. It was just fun discussion.

I told them and they are helping me try to find her! No one is upset at all. Whew! Thought someone was going to be pissed!

Good for you. See, you did well by not listening to me. But don't be a politician lol.

You need to be thankful for having a nice landlord. My advice would have been similar to mark's. First, I wouldn't have a snake unless things were clear with my landlord. However, if I did have a snake against apartment rules, I'd have kept quiet about it. I would have stored the cage in the back of the closet where the landlord wouldn't have noticed it and kept looking. If the snake returned, I'd have gotten the cage out and kept the snake again. If the snake didn't show up, I'd have mourned and gone on.

I realize that much depends on the landlord. I've heard of landlords who didn't consider any animal to be a pet if it lived inside a cage. This reasonable guideline was based on the idea that a snake or lizard in a cage was not going to damage the property in any way. The only animals considered pets were dogs and cats that might damage the floors with urine or damage other parts of the apartment by scratching or chewing.

On the other hand, I've been in a place that allowed only fish, small dogs, and cats. I didn't own snakes back then, and they said absolutely no snakes would be allowed.

Bill
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It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.

I just couldn't stand the thought of her appearing somewhere else and not being able to say she was mine or get her back. I've had her for 6 years now and never told any of my other landlords (about 4) but then again she never escaped.

I think the next place I move into I will make sure that they know I have her but (cross my fingers) I will do my best to make sure that she doesn't escape again.

To me, it would be worth being evicted or other consequences if I could get her back.

Now that you mention it, the possibility of getting a pet back would make many other problems worthwhile. When I first responded, I wasn't thinking of how much the safe return would mean to me if I were in your situation. I hope you find your companion soon.

Bill
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It's not how many snakes you have. It's how happy and healthy you can keep them.