Rock Python

[AlwaysConfused]

Quite shocking. A 16 foot snake escapes from a reptile store and strangles two young boys. Initial investigations show that the store was licensed, but the snake was probably hungry. Surely this snake did not have adequate, secure housing for a snake of such size?

I find it odd that the snake managed to constrict the children but did not take them as prey. A snake will strike if threatened, but will only usually 'crush' to prepare the prey for food. Anyone else sceptical or is it just me? (probably just me!)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-23583116

[themorrigan]

AlwaysConfused I have to admit that thought crossed my mind but it was not reported that the snake left the scene. Maybe the children were in the process of being swallowed and the gory details have been left out of the report as a matter of respect? A terrible tragedy that brings every day annoyances into proportion.

[Frank97]

Maybe the two boys were in the same bed and the snake crushed them both together, otherwise I can't see how the crushing of one child wouldn't wake the other up.

[AlwaysConfused]

My thoughts exactly, Fender, unless the owners kid was familiar with the snake? They do familiarise with people. I have a 4 foot royal python (nowhere near the size of this 16 foot rock python). He/she's a softy, but it's obvious when he is hungry as he spends much time realigning his jaw in preparation for food. I'm no expert, so surely a reptile shop owner would/should have recognised this?

I just cannot see a snake crushing it's preying then buggering off before consuming it.

[Ratty2E]

It does sound odd that the snake would constrict the two separately and not attempt to consume either. I think there's much more to this story which we may or may not find out.

[daffy654]

I was definitely sceptical when first reading the report this morning. I am quite familiar with the behaviour of snakes and this (as reported) is definitely not normal.

[woofgang]

I am not familiar with snake behaviour but I thought that it was a bit odd that the news report described the children as "strangled"

[Octavius]

The snake is only a suspect at this stage.

[mikey4444]

This report doesn't make much sense. Apparently when the two boys were discovered dead in bed, there was no sign of a snake, so I'm not quite sure why its being blamed. Sounds fishy to me.

[DTCwordfan]

Tragic - a rat in the story perhaps........one child perhaps for fodder but not two.

[jno]

there's some explanation at the end of this

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/06/python-pet-shop-kills-boys-canada?INTCMP=SRCH

[ELVIS68]

Sounded dodgy to me when I heard it on the news

[EDDIE51]

I heard it that the two boys were in the same bed and they were such good friends they used to sleep cuddled up together. The snake was so big it was easy to wrap itself around the two of them.

[Svejk]

When I heard this on the radio, I thought 'I wonder am I alone in finding this unbelievable'.
Seems not.

[ummmm]

I assumed the same as Eddie.

[Hypognosis]

The version I heard was that the two boys were best friends with the pet shop owner's son and spent "all their time there". If I heard correctly, it said that all three boys were sleeping in the same bed.

I thought it was odd for the snake to 'selectively' kill the two boys but leave the owner's son unharmed. I thought it was even odder that it was able to harm even one of them without at least waking the other two up, so the second victim seems a little far fetched.

Lets' see if the post mortem raises the same level of publicity.

[ummmm]

It all depends what time it happened. You'd be surprised what people can sleep through once they are in a deep sleep.

[jno]

the third boy was sleeping in another room.

[ummmm]

If the brothers are used to cuddling up then movement would be normal for them and unlikely to wake them up.