This one gives a creepy new meaning to the term “plumber’s snake.”
San Diego animal control officers are caring for a 5 1/2-foot boa constrictor that showed up in a toilet at a Gaslamp District office, emerging from the drainpipe to the horror of workers.
Late Tuesday afternoon, Stephanie Lacsa, co-founder for Vertical PR + Marketing notified the county Department of Animal Services about the reptile’s shocking arrival via the sanitation system.
“Our building, which is the Old San Diego City Hall, was built in 1886 so we are accustomed to the old pipes and stubborn plumbing,” the PR firm’s co-founder Holly Wells said. “But we were definitely not prepared for this!”
Lacsa said that the snake had slithered from the plumbing while she was plunging the toilet due to an excess of water in the bowl. She fled and used adhesive tape to seal the door of the bathroom shut.
“I thought my eyes were deceiving me,” Lacsa said. “But as soon I saw the flicker of its tongue, I definitely knew that it was in fact a large snake heading straight towards me.”
Animal control officers found the reptile on the floor of the lavatory and took it to their Gaines Street shelter for an examination.
If no one claims the Colombian rainbow boa — which was underweight and in the process of shedding when discovered — it will be turned over to a group that specializes in caring for abandoned reptiles, according to the animal services agency.
— City News Service contributed to this story
