(PatriotWise.com) — Employees at Beach Automotive in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, got the shock of their lives on Tuesday when they found an 8-foot-long boa constrictor under the hood of a car that was in for repairs, the New York Post reported.
The mechanics were working on a Ford Focus when they discovered the albino boa twisted around the engine.
WPDE reported that the mechanics called in “Snake Chaser” Russell Cavender to rid them of the unwanted passenger that appeared to have gotten snared by the engine’s mechanisms.
Working slowly, Cavender was able to pull the snake out enough to take hold of its end and guide it to freedom. It was only after the snake was freed that the mechanics realized just how large it was.
In a Facebook post, Cavender noted that while he has found many animals beneath the hood of cars, including squirrels, rats, possums, and even “several snakes,” he never found a boa constrictor that was 8 feet long.
When the mechanics contacted the owner of the Ford Focus to tell him about his stowaway, the owner had no idea where it came from or how it got there.
It isn’t uncommon for snakes to work their way inside the engines of cars since they are a perfect place to hide from predators.
In April, a Texas woman was forced to use a ruler to extract a snake out of the engine of her daughter’s Mini-Cooper after chasing it out of a chicken coop. She told Fox 26 in Houston that she wouldn’t have attempted it if the snake hadn’t been non-venomous.
Boa constrictors are also non-venomous. Typically found in South and Central America, boas can grow to as long as 13 feet and weigh over 100 pounds.
It is legal to own boa constrictors. According to the US Association of Reptile Keepers, they are a popular choice among snake owners.
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