Current:Home > MyAn unwanted shopping partner: Boa constrictor snake found curled up in Target cart in Iowa -Zenith Profit Hub
An unwanted shopping partner: Boa constrictor snake found curled up in Target cart in Iowa
View
Date:2025-04-17 09:49:02
A Target customer in Sioux City, Iowa was in for a surprise when they pulled out a cart and found a boa constrictor coiled up in it.
Lindsay Alvarez, a resident of Sioux City, posted a picture of the snake in the Target cart on social media, writing that her daughter spotted "this little guy at Target" on August 13. She did not specify which Target store the snake was found at.
A Target representative, in an email to USA TODAY, confirmed that the snake was indeed found at a store in the city and said that their team acted quickly and animal control removed it from the property.
Harrison Ford's snake:'We probably would’ve been friends,' Harrison Ford says of new snake species named for him
While it is not yet clear how the snake made its way to Target, authorities believe the reptile may have gotten inside the store after it stowed away outside in a cart which was then taken into the store. Cindy Rarat, manager of the Sioux City Animal Adoption and Rescue Center told USA TODAY they assume the boa may have either come from an apartment complex close by, escaped from a car or been left by someone.
"We're not exactly sure how it came to be there," Rarat said
The animal was later taken to the Sioux City Animal Adoption and Rescue Center, where it is currently housed. Rarat said that the 4-and-a-half-foot-long snake has been taken care of, is well-fed and is in good health.
Unclaimed
A spokesperson at the facility told USA TODAY that no one has come forward to claim the animal and that a herpetologist from Lincoln, Nebraska has volunteered to take the snake. The herpetologist, who is also a professor, intends to keep it for educational purposes in a classroom. The herpetologist will be collecting the animal on Saturday from the facility, once the seven-day waiting period for claiming the animal ends, the spokesperson said.
Sioux City laws do not allow residents to keep constrictors as pets and if someone comes forward to claim the animal, they will have to show proof of ownership and house the snake outside city limits.
Pet alligator:Gator in 'deplorable' state rescued by landscapers from creek in Pennsylvania
Preferred pets
Native to Central and South America, boa constrictors typically do not attack humans, according to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. They are non-venomous and kill their prey by strangling them, as their name suggests. They can live up to 20 years.
Boa constrictors are popular as pets as they are relatively undemanding, as long as their large adult size and space needs are accounted for, as per the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. In some areas, these reptiles are used to control rodent and opossums populations.
Target recall:2.2 million Threshold candles recalled; at least 1 injured
veryGood! (77)
Related
- House passes bill to add 66 new federal judgeships, but prospects murky after Biden veto threat
- Super Bowl LVIII: Nickelodeon to air a kid-friendly, SpongeBob version of the big game
- Residents in northern Mexico protest over delays in cleaning up a mine spill
- At least 16 dead and 12 injured as passenger bus falls off ravine in central Philippines
- Nevada attorney general revives 2020 fake electors case
- Two separate earthquakes, magnitudes 5.1 and 3.5, hit Hawaii, California; no tsunami warning
- How Margot Robbie Stood Up to Oppenheimer Producer to Make Barbenheimer Happen
- Florida discontinues manatee winter feeding program after seagrass conditions improve
- Opinion: Gianni Infantino, FIFA sell souls and 2034 World Cup for Saudi Arabia's billions
- Jamie Foxx makes first public appearance since hospitalization, celebrates ability to walk
Ranking
- Working Well: When holidays present rude customers, taking breaks and the high road preserve peace
- UN food agency stops deliveries to millions in Yemen areas controlled by Houthi rebels
- Man charged with murder in Philadelphia store stabbing that killed security guard, wounded another
- RHOC Alum Alexis Bellino Is Dating Shannon Beador's Ex John Janssen
- Head of the Federal Aviation Administration to resign, allowing Trump to pick his successor
- Serena Williams Reveals Her Breastmilk Helped Treat the Sunburn on Her Face
- Maduro orders the ‘immediate’ exploitation of oil, gas and mines in Guyana’s Essequibo
- Missouri’s next education department chief will be a Republican senator with roots in the classroom
Recommendation
Costco membership growth 'robust,' even amid fee increase: What to know about earnings release
Copa América 2024 draw is Thursday, here's how it works and how to watch
Kate Middleton Channels Princess Diana With This Special Tiara
Prince Harry challenges decision to strip him of security after move to US with Meghan
The company planning a successor to Concorde makes its first supersonic test
Dancing With the Stars Season 32 Winners Revealed
Wisconsin judge reaffirms July ruling that state law permits consensual abortions
Paraguay rounds up ex-military leaders in arms smuggling sting carried out with Brazil