Royal Python has escaped!

[Belvedeer]

My daughter’s royal python escaped on New Year’s Eve and is still missing. I followed tips online to search room by room and then sealing the door off if she’s not in there but can’t find her anywhere! I’ve literally ransacked the place, every piece of clothing has been removed and checked even the hanging clothes, every drawer has been removed, I even pulled the fridge freezer out and took the plinths off in the kitchen! We’ve left her viv door open with a mouse inside, tried leaving a hot water bottle with hide on the top next to a mouse at night but still no sign. Does anyone have any other tips of what we can do? I have a distraught 8 year old on my hands!

The unlucky fate of goldfish is one my specialist subjects. I suspect they might be the mostly commonly mistreated of all pets because they are cheap, common and more tricky to keep (well) than most people want to know about. It's sad indeed.

Gold fish belong in ponds, I rescued my brothers fish from a small dirty tank several years ago, they are now huge and living in my pond, they seem very happy.

@Lovemusic33 mine are the same. Tiny wee ones from p@h and I decided to put them in the garden pond as I felt guilty with them in the tank. 10 years later and they are still living in the pond and huge!

Common goldfish do - the size of a tank a common godlfish needs is massive. Some of the hardier fancies do too (e.g. comets).

Many fancy goldfish may struggle in a UK pond over winter and some varieties would struggle most of the year round (e.g. bubble eyes).

I have one fancy goldfish in my pond, he’s pretty big and has really pretty long fins and tail.

Goldfish are poop machines which makes it hard to keep them in a tank, they need cleaning out a lot and each time you clean them out you cause them stress which is why they develop diseases and often die.

I don't disagree at all - and a massive fancy will find cold very easy to deal with indeed.

All pets are an exercise in getting food in one end and cleaning it up when it comes out the other (as the sanke in the video so delightfully demonstrated but goldfish, somehow, produce more out the end than you put in the front

Plus water chemistry is tricky to monitor and keep stable in a tank. Not impossible, but does require water volume, filtration and testing the water regularly to look for issues.

What kinds of things can you do with them that's fun? (Genuine question)

Probably as much as you can do with a guinea pig or hamster. Hold them, watch them explore, ours hangs out and watches tv too

@midnightstar66

What kinds of things can you do with them that's fun? (Genuine question)

Probably as much as you can do with a guinea pig or hamster. Hold them, watch them explore, ours hangs out and watches tv too

What kinds of programmes does he enjoy watching? Is his favourite film Stuart Little?

For the person who asked how you get a horse to mount a fake horse , it really is like another poster said. Sometimes they don't even need an actual mare in season and just a jug of horse urine is enough to get him going. Same with Male dogs. Even the best trained guard dogs can be distracted by a puddle of urine from a bitch in heat.

I'll start a thread. I guess in AMA because this sort of thing doesn't really fit into any of the mn categories does it 😂

Rat hats, Jericho and tortoise trunks. Not for faint hearted! AMA www.mumsnet.com/Talk/AMA/4127970-rat-hats-jericho-and-tortoise-trunks-not-for-faint-hearted-ama

What kinds of programmes does he enjoy watching? Is his favourite film Stuart Little?

@Nikhedonia no she doesn't care much for mice. Roland rat or Alvin and the chipmunks are more up her street - but she's definitely not interested in cats!

And yes as @FraggleShingleBellRock says I'm sure there are other methods, but in my experience there is always a 'fluffer' mare involved.

I have seven beautiful Discus in my tropical fish tank and they most definitely show an interest in us. They come over to the glass and seem to say hi when they see us and they most definitely signal when it's feeding time. They have a 300l live planted tank and eat the best in posh fish food. I swear they live better than we do!

@GhostPepperTears - we rescued a fancy years back from a 25l P@H tank with a crap little filter and popped him in a 200l tank. When we got him he was all scrawny and had an a curve in his spine. Within months of living with us he'd filled out, doubled in size and straightened out. We lost him last month unfortunately :(

@midnightstar66

To extract semen from a rhinoceros they sedate him and then basically tazer his genitals. There is a specialist whose job is just to travel the world and do that and then impregnate the females. It's a fascinating area. I imagine electrical stimulation would work with a great deal of animals but their is easier ways like you say. Haven't heard the term "fluffer" in ages 😂 but you are right, that's exactly what they are.

@Belvedeer any sign of it yet?

Nope 🥲

Let us know when you find it

So sorry you’ve not found her yet. Just a quick query, have you checked behind the TV? Our reptile shop owner says that’s the place he tells people to look first, as so many people have said that’s where they found their missing reptile.

Also have you checked behind and under bookcases? When we lost our scorpion (!), I ransacked the house looking for him. Turns out he had crept round the back of a bookcase which had a false front under the bottom shelf (looks solid when you look at it). I realised it must be hollow under the bottom shelf, leaving a snug, dark little place for a critter. Meant we had to pull all the books out, then DH tilted the bookcase to the side so I could look underneath. My DS was practically weeping for joy when he spotted the little bugger brandishing his pincers furiously at us.

Lastly, have you got a couple of water bowls dotted around the house, so you can be sure she has access to water? Might be worth sprinkling a light dusting of flour around the bowl so you can see if she’s been there.

Hope she turns up soon. My friends hognose turned up sunbathing on her drive nearly a year after escaping!

When we lost our scorpion

Even I have limits and I just found mine.

When we lost our scorpion (!),

@MrsTerryPratchett @midnightstar66

Re: the scorpion, it was a rookie mistake. When tidying his enclosure, I made the mistake of assuming he was under his log as usual. After giving a cursory look at the greenery, I lifted it up and moved it to the side of the enclosure. He must have been nestled inside it and done a runner at that point, so totally my fault. It was another several hours before I discovered he was missing.

He was in the same room from which he went missing, so hadn’t got far. He’s not dangerous; his sting would have a similar effect to a bee sting.

But appreciate it’s not something most people would like to find under their bookcase!

I don't even know why I'm shocked by the scorpion, as the owner of a giant millipede, a 4ft python and a small terrier dog I already have quite a range of fearsome (to others) animals!

There a guy from Corrie who put something up on his insta story yesterday. Basically he moved into a new flat and a few weeks later a snake came out from behind the toilet and the rspca had to come and remove it! Turns out the previous tenants lost it and never said anything 🤪🤪

We have giant millipedes, luckily they haven’t managed to go on the run yet, though they are pretty lazy so wouldn’t go far. My main worry is the cat getting anything that escapes.