Woman shocked to find boa constrictor on front porch in Topeka

TOPEKA (KSNT) – A local Topeka woman got a big surprise this week when she found a large snake hanging out on her front porch early Thursday morning.

Lisa Motto told 27 News she was astonished to discover a larger-than-average snake on her front porch. She said the serpent was initially spotted by her cousin who was exiting their house in Topeka’s Oakland neighborhood around 7 a.m. on July 31.

“My cousin was walking out with her child that morning,” Motto said. “She called me and told me there’s a boa on the ramp.”

Motto headed outside and spotted the red-tailed boa on a railing. She thinks the snake found its way there as it searched for a place to warm itself after rain the night before.

“I went out there and I was like ‘oh my god!’ There’s a snake on the ramp!” Motto said.

Red-tailed boa constrictors are non-venomous and can grow to about 10 feet in length, according to the Sacramento Zoo. They usually target small rodents and lizards in the wild and can live up to 25 years in human care.

Motto quickly took to social media, posting an image of the snake to Facebook in the hopes of locating its owner and getting it off her property. She said the snake, while a little unsettling, was tame, but she avoided touching it as she was fearful of it moving.

“It’s not everyday you find a boa constrictor thing on your front porch,” Motto said. “Yeah, if it was really huge I would’ve been freaking out.”

The owners, who lived nearby, came to collect the boa about an hour-and-a-half later after they saw Motto’s Facebook post. Motto said she was happy to see it reunited with its owners but hopes she doesn’t get any other snake-related surprises in the future.

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