Boa constrictor escapes container and kills puppy in Amherst home
“The pet sitter was pretty shocked.”
A large snake being kept as a pet was euthanized by police this week after it killed a puppy in an Amherst home. Amherst Police Sgt. Jesus Arocho said a pet sitter at the home called the department for help around 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday after discovering the 8-foot-long boa constrictor wrapped around and suffocating an 8-month-old Cocker Spaniel puppy. “The pet sitter was pretty shocked,” he said.When officers arrived at the residence on County Corners Road, the dog was dead, and they attempted to remove the puppy from the snake’s grasp. “The snake became angry,” Arocho said. Both the dog and snake belonged to the same owner and were being kept in the same room, according to police. Arocho said it wasn’t clear how the reptile got out of its container.The pet sitter contacted the animals’ owner and informed her what was happening. “She requested the snake be euthanized or put down,” Arocho said. The boa constrictor was snared, taken out of the house, and shot. Arocho said he couldn’t recall the department responding to an incident like this before. “Not many people have 8-foot boa constrictors as pets,” he said.
