Big Snake Found in Forest Neighborhood

Forest, VA – A group of neighbors in Forest got quite a shock this morning, when they discovered an eight-foot boa constrictor slithering through their neighborhood. It set in motion, a coordinated effort to catch the big snake.

“We spotted it laying across the road, it was stretched about three-quarters of the way across our residential street,” said Melanie Roberts.

She took this picture of the big boa, before it slithered into a yard and up a tree.

The home owner tried to stop it.

“I got the broom handle under it and I couldn’t pick it up, it was heavy,” said Steve Jenkins.

State game wardens were called in to help out.

“This is actually going to be a domesticated animal, I will consider, which we really don’t deal with,” said Game & Inland Fisheries Officer Zach Adams.

But they did lend a hand, actually it took four hands to pull the snake out.

“This is something you don’t see every day,” said Officer Adams.

In the end, the big snake appeared to be tame and never put up a fight.

“I was watching Discovery Channel the other day and they was talking about all these big snakes that are turned loose in the U.S. now and there’s reportedly millions of them.  And they said your neighborhood is next and I didn’t think mine was going to be this soon,” said Jenkins.

The snake was placed in a pillow case and handed over to a local pet store.

“We’ll keep him for about a week, until somebody claims him,” said Christopher Herndon of Pet & Aquatic Warehouse.

For the woman who first spotted the boa, she’s glad it worked out the way it did.

“I think most people seeing a snake that size would have been afraid and they would have shot it,” said Roberts.

Game Wardens are convinced the snake was someone’s pet but they’re not sure if it escaped or was set loose.