40 pythons found in Canada motel ? ten days after two boys killed by escaped snake
The seized ball pythons, all between 1 and 4 1/2 feet, were being stored in several plastic storage containers inside the motel room, police said. Cops said they launched an investigation, but no arrests have been made.
BY JOE KEMP / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
SATURDAY,AUGUST 17, 2013, 2:24 PM
An animal cruelty investigator holds one of 40 ball pythons that were seized from a southern Ontario motel room.
Ten days after two Canadian brothers were killed by an escaped 14-foot python, authorities found 40 of the snakes at a southern Ontario motel.
The seized ball pythons, all between 1 and 4 1/2 feet, were found in several plastic storage bins that were being stored in a Colborne St. motel on Thursday, Brantford Police said in a statement.
?These snakes are well-handled, but I?m sure situations could arise when they can be dangerous,? James said.
Brandon James, an inspector with the Brant County SPCA, said the reptiles were suffering from dehydration.
?We popped the lids of the containers and saw a mass of snakes,? he told the St. Catharines Standard.
The 40 pythons were being kept in plastic containers that were stuffed inside a southern Ontario motel room.
?They were all entangled. They were in distress because of the overcrowding.?
Brandon James, an investigator with the Brant County SPCA, said the death of two boys in early August
It was not immediately clear if police questioned a couple who had been evicted from the room before the stash of snakes was found.
Cops said they were still investigating the incident, but no charges had been filed.
Noah Barthe, 6, and his 4-year-old brother, Connor, were killed by an African rock python that escaped from an enclosure at their friend?s apartment.
A 100-pound African rock python strangled two young brothers as they slept after the creature escaped an enclosure inside the Campbellton, New Brunswick, home on Aug. 4.
Connor Barthe, 6, and his 4-year-old brother, Noah, were sleeping at a friend?s apartment above an exotic pet store when the killer serpent slipped out of its cage and into the room where they were sleeping.
Noah and Connor Barthe, inseparable during their life, were buried in the same casket.
The python was captured and euthanized. A necropsy later found the snake was in good health when it died.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police launched a criminal investigation, which is ongoing.
Authorities have said that the pet shop?s owner may not have been licensed to keep the python, which is banned in the province.
James said the tragic deaths sparked a lot of fear about the snakes. But he didn?t think the pythons found could kill.
?It was probably an isolated incident,? James said. ?There is fear it may happen again. There is no reason to believe that it would happen with these smaller snakes, but I don?t know them well.?
jkemp@nydailynews.com
@joekemp