to be really scared and pissed off with the RSPCA.

[HelenaDove]

Last Weds night a snake found its way into my kitchen. It was on the wall above the cooker.

I heard the saucepans ding and saw it, I freaked out i called the RSPCA. They asked loads of questions. They said it was a corn snake Im incredibly phobic. They told me to go round all my neighbours at midnight and ask if its someones pet. They refused to come out. So did the police when i phoned them. In desperation i phoned the council and got my third refusal. So DH tried to catch it to put it outside It was too fast and got through a hole in the kitchen floor. We filled the holes at the instruction of the RSPCA. My 65 year old husband with a heart condition had to try and deal with it I was and still am a wreck. RSPCA phoned at 8.30 am the next morning (Thurs) to ask if it was still there after telling me to "leave it" (they didnt give a fuck about the cat i told them i have) Didnt ask whether i have young children or a baby in a cot. During The Thurs morn phone call she told me to call again if the snake comes back. Well at midnight DH saw it trying to get through the venty bit in the window of the communal hallway and managed to gently shove it outside.
Phoned RSPCA again who again told me that they cant come out at this hour and can only come out during the daytime. Ive been living in fear since last Weds. Woman on Thurs promised me they would come out if it appeared again.

The guy on the phone tonight warned me that if the snake gets hurt i would be prosecuted.
But they WONT come out Im petrified Snakes are nocturnal FFS! My nerves are fucking bad. DH has had to take extra GTN spray

I googled earlier and found this. And they had the cheek to tell this couple it was "crossed wires" And like this couple we are in Essex too.

www.express.co.uk/news/uk/493358/Man-removes-five-foot-snake-from-kitchen

I think the response to an escaped Python would be understandably different to a corn snake, the former is potentially dangerous.

what FlowerBomber said - a python is a dangerous animal, a corn snake is completely harmless. the fact that the OP has a phobia of snakes is not the police nor the RSPCA's problem unfortunately.

Where did I say they had knowledge about snakes?

I said I would call them if there was a potentially dangerous animal in my house. I would expect them to know, or be able to quickly find out, who to call in such circumstances.

People in the UK do keep dangerous snakes, spiders etc as pets. How is OP to know what a cornsnake is capable of?

I'm not scared of snakes, or very many animals, as it happens and would be likely to simply catch the bloody thing myself and hand it over to an appropriate rescue (assuming my children didn't first claim as it there own and appropriate a viv from somewhere), but I'm not OP.

OP felt she was in danger and called an emergency service to help. It is a natural reaction. She hasn't whinged about the police not helping, only the RSPCA, who really should be helping.

There is no need for a lot of the comments she has gotten, in fact I'd be willing to bet if she'd posted "Help, there is a snake loose in my flat" one of the first responses would have been MN's catch all line of "OMG OP, ring 101 now!" etc.

I think lostmysanity makes some very good points.

I found a grass snake in my garden, still shit myself even though I know they're harmless. If it was in my house, yeah, I would have been irrational in the short term.

Irresponsible pet owners are a PITA.

If there was snake in my house I'd have to move out until it was gone. I can't look at pictures of them, watch them on TV and I'm shaking from just reading this thread. It doesn't mean I need to grow up, it means I have a fucking phobia.

Some people have been really harsh on the OP, she can't control how she feels.

As other posters have said, they are not native and it will be sleepy and slow at night as it will be cold. It will seek heat so a boiler, hot water pipes, airing cupboard etc. Check with the neighbours, maybe worth giving a local reptile shop a ring of you have one, they tend to be enthusiasts (the guy who owns the one local to me is brilliant with all sorts of exotic creatures!) and will possibly come and help you get it if you see it again.

your property is HA? Can you ask them to hire someone? And you repay them via your rent?
or hire someone yourself?
or find local groups for pet snake owners and talk to them? Join a reptile forum and ask for help?
There will be something you can do. Some sort of humane trap you can buy or rent or borrow.

As an aside. the rspca are crap in every way. I wouldn't bother wasting your time calling them again if I were you. I reported neglected animals, including no water AND being tormented by a child in the house - including said child dunking one of the animals under water!

They refused to come out.

Then had the nerve to give my number to their chuggers who called me with the opening line that they knew I was someone who loved animals...

I hit the roof.

Mrsmorton I don't think anyone's disputing the OP's right to a phobia, but unfortunately the harsh truth is that it isn't the RSPCA's nor the police's issue that she has one. It's not a reason for them to respond to a situation which doesn't require intervention.

I have a spider phobia but don't call the police every time there's a massive one in my bathroom (I wish I could!!!)

Oh, I see. Instead of dealing with crime and calls for help with genuine emergencies the police should spend their time ringing round the same reptile shops and groups that the op could call herself.

How to catch an escaped corn snake: (from here)
"Lay some sound traps along the walls. The crinkly-sound-making plastic bags from the grocery store are great. Kind of crumple them up and put them on the floor, at least one on each exposed wall. Do the same in any nooks and crannies (spaces between furniture and walls, for example). About 9-10 PM, when it is completely dark, turn off all the lights, turn off the TV, stereo, make it as quiet as possible. Then, with a flashlight turned off but close at hand, just sit. And listen. Give it a half hour or so for the snake to become convinced that it's safe to move. Once it hits one of the bags (or any other crinkly or other noise making sound traps you've put out), you'll hear it. It is just a matter of figuring out where the noise came from, getting over there quickly without causing a great deal of vibrations through the floor (you don't want to overly alert them to your coming), get that flashlight on, and nail 'em.

That doesn't work? Too tired to keep it up all night? No problem. Before retiring for the evening, lay about an inch-wide strip of flour or cornstarch across the doorways. The next morning, if the snake moved through any of the doorways, you will see the trail for a short distance pointing in the direction they were headed. This, if nothing else, should help you narrow down the field of search.

If the sound and flour don't work, you can also put a nice warm mouse (dead is fine, you can buy them frozen in pet shops) in an empty liter soda bottle. Poke a few holes in it to let as much odor out as possible. Place it someplace on the warm side (again, get those odors out there), disappear yourself, and wait. The snake may come out for a snack, and stay (the black bottoms of some of the bottles makes a nice cave-y feeling place) after its eaten."

A safe way to transport the snake is in a pillowcase. You might want to enlist the help of someone who isn't phobic, though

Why shouldn't the RSPCA be helping? They ask for public donations to help them prevent animal suffering.

When was this snake last fed? Watered? How cold is it? How many potential predators (cats/dogs) is it exposed to? Has it injured itself?

The RSPCA do not know that this animal is not suffering or distressed.

I think comparing a house spider to a snake is unfair. House spiders are harmless, a lot snakes are not. If there was a tarantula in your bathroom or a Brazilian Wandering Spider or any other of the commonly kept as pets arachnids, you'd expect help in removing it wouldn't you?

Instead of dealing with crime and calls for help with genuine emergencies the police should spend their time ringing round the same reptile shops and groups that the op could call herself.

Or dealing with stroppy teenagers outside houses, or parking disputes - because the normal MN advice is to dial 101 for pretty much anything.

I think the OPs case is more valid than most that crop up on here TBH, if they can't deal they'll tell her (as they did) so no harm done (apart from to you for some reason)

Are you deliberately misinterpreting my posts Flower?

I never said that the police were wrong not to respond to OP's call, I said her calling them was understandable, as in her eyes, this snake was a potential danger.

And yes, if the snake had turned out to be poisonous I would expect the police to signpost OP to the relevant authority or contact them on her behalf, much as I would expect them to deal with an out of control dog, escaped zoo animal or any other animal threat to human life.

This snake is not, as it turns out a threat, so the police should not be expected to help, neither I nor OP, have said they should have but she was not unreasonable to have called them in her panic. She does not need to grow up, learn to be self sufficient or any other of the harsh comments that have been leveled at her for calling an emergency service to deal with what she, at the time, believed was a threat to her safety.

Also the police are supposed to keep a log of missing property and pets, so OP really did the right thing.

Had the owner of the snake already contacted them and they'd logged it, this could already have been resolved.

IKnowIAm what an awful thing to suggest OP to do

OP, if it does come back and your husband can pick it up, put the snake in an empty old pillowcase and tie up the top. It will keep it safe and calm. Then bring it to the local vets or reptile pet shop, or see if anyone on Facebook has lost a pet. Corn snakes are pets, someone's probably looking for it.

I think you're giving the OP a hard time about her phobia. I too am terrified of snakes, it's irrelevant to me whether they're harmless or not, or if it's more frightened of me than I am of it (unlikely actually!). I don't think ringing the RSPCA was an unreasonable thing to do either - it would have been my first port of call. I don't know if this is resolved but if not, look for a local nature trust, or try a pet shop to see if they can help.

It's not unreasonable to ring the rspca for advice about the animals welfare, or even to establish whether there is actual risk or what action to take. But op didn't ring out of concern for the snake, she rang because of her phobia. And that's not the responsibility of the rspca or the police. Ops phobia did not prevent her understanding the implications on her dh, so she is equally capable of realising the implications on the poor guy on the phone, who however useless the rspca as an organisation are at dealing with even obvious suffering, was just doing his job.
I don't have a phobia of snakes, so In ops shoes I'd have rang to establish it posed no actual threat, for advice on what to do next, and then followed it through, because that's the reasonable and logical thing to do. Having a phobia of snakes does not prevent you understanding that is the logical thing to do, even if what is reasonable for you is to run off screaming. Nobody has a phobia of a loose hungry boa constrictor in their bed, because we all share a sensible actual fear of risking death. Reacting to a corn snake in that way does indicate a phobia to excuse responding illogically, in that you can run off screaming if that's what you feel best. It does not excuse expecting welfare charities and emergency services to respond to your self admitted phobia as a logical and reasonable fear. Because again, admitting you have a phobia, rather than a healthy fear^ means you have already acknowledged your fear isn't logical or reasonable.

IKnowIAm what an awful thing to suggest OP to do

Why? It's what she'd do for a Rat, why not a Snake?

If no-one "official" will help, then the solution is to deal with it by yourself. Big stick, trap - whatever suits....

Because a snake might set it off with its tail so instead of killing it you just torture the poor thing

Like a rat might do with its leg you mean?

Try Harder....

I wouldn't do that to a rat either.

If you're actually serious iknow then that's vile. Rat or snake or anything else with the ability to feel pain or fear.

trapping g is cruel full stop.

rats sadly spread disease and you have massive infestations. which unfortunately leaves little choice in some circumstances.

But this is one measly docile harmless snake that's clearly a pet and poses no threat

Please post on reptileforum.co.uk someone may be able to come round get it and re-home it or keep it till the owner comes forward.
Or set up a nice snug box with a towel in it and put a hot water bottle under it. The snake will hide in the warmth. I know you don't like them but just imagine if your loved cat/dog/hamster was too cold and in pain as the snake will be you'd want someone to help him, wouldn't you?

Off thread but a terrier or a true hunting cat (either feral or proper farm cat that doesn't have kittens it's teaching, not a pet that will torture it) is the most humane method in my experience to deal with rats, unless you are either capable of shooting them yourself or have the funds to pay someone else to hang around to do it)