So I am finally getting enough time to sit and post this. Hopefully enough time has passed to make it funny.
At 4am I awoke today to the noise like a gentle knock. Expecting my kids to have gotten up or similar. Alas there is nothing and I put the noise down to dreamy awakeness moment.
At 6am both the wife and I awoke to a chink type sound. After a startled "what was that" the Mrs got the idea that a stack of food dishes soaking in soapy water had tumbled. She got out the bed and checked it out, but the dishes were fine. Suddenly from the corner of her eye she spies movement on the floor and makes a profanity. I hit the lights and there she spies my desert kingsnake on the floor.
Instinctively she grabs the snake and I leap up but we have a problem: this is the snake that is guaranteed to bite. And we dont know how it got out its home so cannot put it back in. So I frantically sort out a secure storage tub, she dodges strikes, snake poops everywhere to boot.
It turns out the snake has figured out how to open one of the access hatches on the roof of its home. You may wonder how we know the snake did it and not one of us left it open.
Because of the snakes behaviour I am the only one that handles it. We have an extremely strict regime when dealing with the reptiles. And to date we have managed many years with high numbers of reptiles and not had a single snake escape before (it is surprisingly common.) Our only previous escape was two frogs who were able to find through the vent gaps! In addition, the last time I used that particular access point was over two weeks ago. If it had been like that for two weeks, the snake would have been gone long ago as I see him prodding them daily.
So, with our first middle of the night escape, I leave you all with this story. I am very rarely bitten, I treat these creatures with the utmost care and respect. Meticulous attention to detail does not prevent all eventualities and people: sleep with one eye open!
At 4am I awoke today to the noise like a gentle knock. Expecting my kids to have gotten up or similar. Alas there is nothing and I put the noise down to dreamy awakeness moment.
At 6am both the wife and I awoke to a chink type sound. After a startled "what was that" the Mrs got the idea that a stack of food dishes soaking in soapy water had tumbled. She got out the bed and checked it out, but the dishes were fine. Suddenly from the corner of her eye she spies movement on the floor and makes a profanity. I hit the lights and there she spies my desert kingsnake on the floor.
Instinctively she grabs the snake and I leap up but we have a problem: this is the snake that is guaranteed to bite. And we dont know how it got out its home so cannot put it back in. So I frantically sort out a secure storage tub, she dodges strikes, snake poops everywhere to boot.
It turns out the snake has figured out how to open one of the access hatches on the roof of its home. You may wonder how we know the snake did it and not one of us left it open.
Because of the snakes behaviour I am the only one that handles it. We have an extremely strict regime when dealing with the reptiles. And to date we have managed many years with high numbers of reptiles and not had a single snake escape before (it is surprisingly common.) Our only previous escape was two frogs who were able to find through the vent gaps! In addition, the last time I used that particular access point was over two weeks ago. If it had been like that for two weeks, the snake would have been gone long ago as I see him prodding them daily.
So, with our first middle of the night escape, I leave you all with this story. I am very rarely bitten, I treat these creatures with the utmost care and respect. Meticulous attention to detail does not prevent all eventualities and people: sleep with one eye open!
But I'm glad you caught him. 
