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Tazz is loose.

Posted by Paige at 9/22/2011 2:16:07 PM

Well, my little cornsnake Tazz is loose. I discovered this yesterday when I went to get him out for a little exercise; I don't recall 100% whether or not he has been out since his last feeding on the fourteenth. I went to get him out and discovered that one corner of his screen top was NOT pushed down or latched in. I don't know if I was in a hurry or my boyfriend just forgot, but that doesn't really matter now; all I want is my little tazz back safe and sound. I tore my room apart and proceeded to search the entire house. After a day of this and no luck, I gave in and put flour along all the doorways, closet doors, and hall sides. Put his tank on the floor with his branch decoration making it easy to get in and turned up the heat on the pad. I also put out plastic plates and poured water in them to help him avoid dehydration. I've heard glue traps work, but he's so darn small (only 60g now, up from the 6g he was when I bought him in february) that I'm not confident that will bring him back as safe as patience and more searches would.

This morning I went out and got a fuzzy mouse and it's currently on the heat pad in his tank on the floor under a lamp, the rest of the room is dark...but I'm not sure he'll go for it since he's already overdue to shed. I put his humid hide out on the floor too but I can only hope that's enough. There are so many small holes and places he could be, I can't stop kicking myself and feeling sick to my stomach with anxiety for letting this happen to my little guy and for not realizing sooner. We know he's been out since at least monday the 19th since my sister reportedly "Saw a tail going out under the bathroom door, thought it was tazz but figured he was safe in his cage and just assumed it was a mouse" and proceeded to tell no one.

We've looked at all the hot spots and searched anything he could be hiding in no matter how impossible it seemed...here's hoping in time we can find him, but in the mean while does anyone have any more tips? Or does anyone have experience or tips for the glue traps with such a tiny snake? I plan on searching again this afternoon when I get home and staking out all night after my night class since I've got no classes on fridays, but without being proctive I can't keep myself from feeling sick about the whole thing.

Comments:

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Aaron Florian,	Posted At: 9/22/2011 4:53:44 PM
	sorry, it's tough when they're loose. but most of the time i see this story come back with a happy ending :)

Mystic Exotics ,	Posted At: 9/22/2011 7:16:11 PM
	I would not use glue traps, but you can use something like painter's tape, that is not as sticky, but is still effective. You can use olive oil to remove the tape if he gets real stuck to it. Check in high places, they like to climb. Look in places you wouln't think they would normally go, re-check places, & re-check them again. Like Aaron said, more often than not, they turn up. I had one that got out & I found her in a big box of misc reptile supplies that was sitting on the floor. She had crawled up, & ended up inside a plastic bag that I had some empty small boxes for hides in.) I know people that have found runaway snakes in purses or backpacks, & one of my friends got his snake back after 8 months of being on the run, he turned up at his neighbors yard. Don't give up!

Jason ,	Posted At: 9/22/2011 8:50:50 PM
	I had a bullsnake get loose once...she was missing for a couple months. And I searched EVERYWHERE for an entire week to no avail. I lived in an old apartment with holes and seemingly endless places for her to really get out of reach. I had given up on her and was packing to move out (a couple MONTHS after she went missing) and as I was unpacking a box I had checked several times after she went missing at my new apartment the little wench came out from under some christmas decorations and other stuff and bit me :) Sweetest snake bite ever. Scared me to death though and I'm a snake person, just wasn't expecting it. Can't imagine if she had gotten into someone else's box...could give someone a heart attack for sure. Point is, they usually turn up safe and sound, right after you think it's time to give up hope. Good luck.

Lauren ,	Posted At: 9/22/2011 9:49:42 PM
	I rarely find a snake when I'm looking for them, they mostly just appear or I find them when I'm not looking for them. Little ones are difficult, but I've lost a 7ft carpet python for 3 weeks before. She wasn't anywhere near someplace warm and I've found from my experience that no, they don't go find warm spots. I had a chondro escape and found him near frozen next to the sliding glass door in winter. I'd avoid glue traps, and be ready for the occasional late night or veerry early morning. They're more active at night and if you just sit in a room calmly, with a flashlight (off!) and wait you may here some noises. With such a little snake I wouldn't even lay out tape or anything, but you could if you have hard floors and no one minds, put something like flour sprinkled alongside wall edges-- you'll be able to see snake body marks. For the most part, they do stay close to where their cage was so don't expect that the escapee has gone out the room and down two flights of stairs into the corner in the basement or something. Keep looking in that room. Good luck, and I think in the future I would definitely check on your snakes at least daily. It is always good to do a "viability" check and make sure everyone is alive and well, every single day.

Paige ,	Posted At: 9/23/2011 1:38:15 PM
	Thank you for the encouragement, everyone. :) There is nothing new here yet, the fuzzy mouse went untouched overnight and there's no marks in any of the flour. My best guess is that he's hunkering down somewhere trying to shed, or found his way to the basement. Regardless, I'm beginning a house-wide sweep starting from my room just after this post. :) Lol Jason, that was something I was joking about with my mom. She was asking how to handle the situation if he turned up while I was in class, and we both agreed we'd be relieved to be bitten by that little rascal just to know where he was! And thank you for the advice, Lauren; I normally do make a practice of checking on my snakes daily even if it means harassing my boyfriend into driving me over, but bad timing with my sister needing our shared car for the week and the boyfriend's clutch going out, I didn't have many options left. :P Well, here's hoping I'll be updating again soon with some GOOD news!

SapphireTigress,	Posted At: 9/23/2011 4:35:44 PM
	when my bp gets out, he normally hides in the closet. Its dark and quiet in there. I hope you have good luck in finding him!

Jennifer White,	Posted At: 9/23/2011 11:30:56 PM
	Good luck finding him. We found ours on the only day no one was looking due to work and me being sick. He showed up under the water heater, found by 2 cats at 1am. He was safe, untouched by the cats, cold and dusty. Missing for 5 days. They can hide in the oddest places. Found my BP in a bag of unused cat litter, but the sliding glass back door, coat closet, and desk drawer- twice. I think the cat litter was the strangest. She now has 8 locks. I check them twice daily. AM and PM.

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