The hapless snake had to be helped by two folks from the Northern Colorado Wildlife Center.
A bullsnake (Pituophis catenifer sayi) who thought it was eaten bird eggs, ingested two golf balls inside a chicken coop. The hapless snake was helped by two folks from the Northern Colorado Wildlife Center, who spent 30 minutes to remove the balls. They used a technique to help the snake regurgitate the golf balls without further harm to the reptile, the center reported on its Facebook page.
“Thank you to the finder who reported the injured snake to us immediately after finding it. These golf balls were causing a serious GI (gastro intestinal) blockage within the snake, and it was imperative that they were removed quickly and safely to avoid having to do surgery,” the center reported on its Facebook page. “As of now, the snake is doing very well and only has minor soreness and scale damage. It was hungry, of course, and has already eaten a small meal from us.”
Bullsnakes are opportunistic eaters that consume a variety of animals, including small mammals such as rats and mice, birds, other reptiles and of course, eggs. How two golf balls ended up in a chicken coup sorta makes you wonder why they were there in the first place.
The bullsnake is one of the five largest snake species in North America and is widely kept among reptile enthusiasts. The can grow to more than six feet in length and are widely captive bred with morphs available as well. They are close relatives to pine snake and gopher snakes.
