Neighbors, trooper kill aggressive snake

Tue, Aug 19, 2008    to del.icio.us

WEST OLIVE — Brian Ahlin slowed his pickup truck to a stop after seeing what looked like a tree branch in the middle of the road.

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"As I got close I thought, 'Oh, that ain't no stick,'" the 54-year-old West Olive man said.

Ahlin said he then realized it was a snake — a 6-foot-10-inch-long boa constrictor — when it lunged at his truck on 156th Avenue in West Olive late Monday morning.

Tom Moore, also of West Olive, then called the police, but Ahlin was worried the snake was a threat to children at nearby Pine Bend Park. Taking matters into his own hands, Ahlin threw his three-quarter-ton Chevy Silverado pickup truck into reverse and ran over the snake.

"It was like going over a rubber hose," Ahlin said. "I must have ran over him about 10 times and it didn't do nothing."

Despite Ahlin's efforts, the snake was still lunging at the men when Michigan State Police trooper Bill Coon arrived on the scene. Coon killed the snake with three gun shots, Ahlin said.

"It was just in the middle of the road," Coon said. "Luckily, we were armed — otherwise, I wouldn't have been within a half-mile from that thing."

The snake is not native to West Michigan, and likely escaped or was abandoned by its owner — according to Barb Snyder, general curator at John Ball Zoo in Grand Rapids.

Police first identified the snake as a Burmese python through a local pet store, but Snyder said its markings resemble a boa constrictor.

Snyder said the snake probably attempted to attack the men because it was scared. She said even large snakes typically won't attack humans.

"It could have struck out of fear," Snyder said. "The fact that it lunged at him — any animal in an unfamiliar situation could do that — even a common dog or cat."

Many people purchase exotic pets without considering all the work involved, Snyder said.

"Before these purchases are made, they really need to educate themselves on what all is involved," she said. "They get a little overwhelming when they're that big unless you have the proper space to keep them."

Snyder said people who find exotic animals in the wild should call local animal control personnel, although she understands the men's reaction to the big snake in West Olive.

"You hate to see something like that happen," she said. "You wish they would have called ... and could place the snake in a appropriate situation. However, I do understand people's fears."

The men didn't want the snake to get back into the woods or into the nearby Pigeon River for fear it would be a menace to the neighbors.

"It was hungry and its mouth was huge," Moore said. "It could swallow a small animal — someone's pet or something. It was a danger."

Ahlin said his 50-pound dog, Chubby, was attempting to jump out of the truck and tangle with the snake.

"Chubby would have been lunch," Ahlin said.

Both men said they will be a little leery next time they take a hike in the woods of West Olive.

"It was an interesting day," Moore said. "I've never seen one up close, and I hope I never do again."

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