A Target Iowa store worker was given the shock of her life after finding a boa constrictor curled up in a shopping basket.
Boa Constrictor Was ‘On Target’
Customers and employees at an Iowa Target store were in for a surprise when a shopping card brought in from the outdoor corral turned out to already be occupied by a Colombian red-tailed boa constrictor.
The Sioux City Police Department confirmed animal control officers responded to the Sunnybrook Drive Target store in Sioux City on a report of a large snake in a shopping cart.
“This is the first time in 38 years that I’ve ever seen a snake go shopping at a local Target store,” she laughed. “Every day is a new adventure because we never know what we’ll get.”
Cindy Rarrat with the Sioux City Animal Adoption and Rescue Center told KCAU 9 that they are investigating how the snake got in the shopping cart, whether it found its way to the cart or was placed in it.
“It’s unknown at this time. Although, we did have a witness that came forward that said they saw a large snake the night before in the parking lot of Target, so if this was the same snake, we don’t know,” Rarrat said. “We tried to get video footage from the store but we haven’t come up with anything so its unknown at this time as to where it would have originated at”
“It’s quite a large snake, probably 4-5 feet long,” Rarrat told FOX Weather. “Red, beautiful, beautiful snake. Not typically indigenous to this area.”
Rarrat added that they named the snake Target, pronounced “tar-zhay.”
According to the Florida Museum, while the boa constrictor is not venomous, it’s better to stay away if you’re not a professional.
Larger boa constrictors have large teeth and are known to bite if they feel threatened.
While the Colombian red-tailed boa constrictor isn’t illegal to own in the state of Iowa, it is not legal in Sioux City city limits, violating municipal code 7.01.010 covering dangerous animals.
Get the news you need at It’s On News.
