By Lauren Cox | Development Officer
DoveLewis treats a wide variety of stray animals and wildlife every year. This spring we had a particularly interesting client that was brought to DoveLewis after being lost for over a week!
A Slithering Stray Reunited with Family After Eight Days
West Linn police officer John Huntsman responded to an unusual call this summer – a stray ball python had hitched a ride on the car of an unsuspecting Oregon City resident. Officer Huntsman, a biology major and animal lover, arrived to find the snake wrapped around the underside of the vehicle.
He was able to detach the snake, but he had trouble finding an organization that would take such an unusual stray animal. Thanks to the donor-supported Stray Animal & Wildlife Program, DoveLewis was more than willing to care for the lost creature. On the drive to DoveLewis, the snake started poking his head out of the bag. “I ended up grabbing him, and he just wrapped himself around my arm,” Officer Huntsman told KPTV. “He seemed very comfortable.” In the meantime, the python’s family saw Officer Huntsman’s photo of the snake on Twitter.
They contacted the police department and tracked their beloved python, named Forky, to DoveLewis. It turns out that the 7-year-old snake escaped from her cage, left the house and attached herself to a neighbor’s car. She had been missing for eight days. Though missing snakes are rare, the Stray Animal & Wildlife Program was created for moments like this.
“I feel especially proud of the program when we are able to reunite pets with their owners,” said Chief Medical Officer Lee Herold. Forky’s young owner, 14-year-old Trystan Bales, thought Forky was gone forever. He was overjoyed when his mom called to inform him that his python had been found. “I am thankful to DoveLewis for taking such good care of her,” Cassandra Bales, Trystan’s mom, said. “The techs were saying that they could tell she was loved, and they were fighting over who got to take care of her.”
In the first quarter of fiscal year 2018 we have treated 536 stray animals and wildlife. This is an 11 percent increase over the prior year.
Your support ensures that any ill, injured or lost animal gets the emergecny care they need. Thank you so much for your continued generosity!
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