Herpetology News

A Stoneham, Mass., man has been sentenced to two years probation and fined $5,000 after he lost track of his pet cobra. The snake was found, alive, in a classroom of a nearby elementary school. “I strongly advise anyone looking for a new pet to stick to a cat or dog, or at least anything that isn’t poisonous,” suggested the U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts, commenting on the case. Meanwhile, “Squeezer,” a 10-foot python, escaped from his cage in Sioux Falls, S.D., and slithered amok in his owner’s apartment. City animal control officers tried to wrestle the snake back into its cage, but Squeezer tried to strangle an officer and sprayed urine around the apartment. It took three people to control the snake long enough to shoot it to death. (Reuters, 2) ...Pets get the death penalty for failure to be housebroken? They sure are strict in the Dakotas.