One day before two young boys in New Brunswick were discovered killed by an African rock python, a ball python was found in the parking lot of Olds’ Quiznos Sandwich Restaurant in the Cornerstone shopping area.
One day before two young boys in New Brunswick were discovered killed by an African rock python, a ball python was found in the parking lot of Olds’ Quiznos Sandwich Restaurant in the Cornerstone shopping area.
Chantel Durand, an employee at the restaurant who was working on the afternoon of Aug. 4, said a man came in between 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. and told staff at the store there was a snake in the parking lot.
The man and staff at the store called Dean Harper, owner of Olds’ Wrappin About Reptiles, to come and collect the snake.
In the meantime, Durand said she found a box with some air holes in it at the back of the store and went out to retrieve the snake, which was in a parking stall right in front of the restaurant’s doorway.
"I was worried about the young kids around it," Durand said, adding there were quite a few people gathering to look at the snake in the parking area. "And there was also the risk of someone not seeing it and running it over."
After she placed the python in the box, she brought the animal into the back of the store to make sure it remained in the box until Harper arrived to collect it.
"It just seemed scared," Durand said of the snake, adding she wasn’t sure if the snake had escaped from a vehicle or if someone had dumped it in the parking lot.
"I just hope they find whose snake it is," she said.
Harper, who through the Wrappin About Reptiles program educates the public about animals such as snakes, turtles and crocodiles, identified the snake as a ball python.
Ball pythons are found in the wild in Africa and can range in size when full grown from just under a metre in length to nearly 1.5 metres long.
Like the Africa rock python, which can grow much larger, the ball python is a carnivore and kills by constricting its prey.
The snake that killed the boys in New Brunswick was 4.3 metres long.
Harper said when he took possession of the full-grown, metre-long snake, he found it to be "incredibly healthy."
"This was definitely taken care of well," he said.
He added that he believes the snake found near Quiznos may have escaped from a recreational vehicle.
"It’s no different than if your dog jumped out of your truck."
There is a "hot market" for this type of snake right now, Harper said, and the snake is found in pet stores and can go for as much as $30,000.
People are allowed to own ball pythons in Alberta.
Harper said he informed the Alberta SPCA and RCMP upon taking possession of the snake and he will keep the python at his home until its owners are found or come forward.
When asked about the coincidence of finding this snake just before the tragedy involving the two boys in New Brunswick unfolded, Harper said he wanted to reserve judgment on that matter until the investigation into the deaths concludes.
But he said the African rock python, which is illegal to own privately in New Brunswick and Alberta, is not a climbing snake and wonders how it could have escaped from its enclosure into the ceiling.
"It’s just not in their nature," Harper said. "It was kind of odd. But the reality is, as reptiles are becoming more popular as pets, we’re going to see more incidents like this."
He advised anyone looking to have a snake as a pet to keep it in a secure enclosure in the house or when in a vehicle.
And, Harper said, don’t forget to lock the enclosure.
The owner or owners of the ball python found in Olds are asked to contact Harper at 403-556-8050.
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