As if the weren't enough, animal control officers had to remove a two-foot gopher snake from a Redwood City restaurant on Tuesday night, taking it to the shelter in San Mateo before releasing it back into the wild.
Animal control responded at about 7:30 p.m. to a call from at 1099 El Camino Real, where an employee reported finding a wild gopher snake in the men's bathroom, Humane Society spokesman Scott Delucchi said today. There were no patrons nearby and the removal occurred without incident, he said.
"Officer Sean Byrd was covering the south county during those hours and was on site within minutes," Delucchi said. "He secured it pretty quickly."
The snake, which probably made its way into the restaurant looking for food or seeking shelter, was taken to the Humane Society's shelter, where it spent the night, Delucchi said.
"It was lethargic and cold, so rather than releasing it right there, we brought it back to our wildlife care center," he said.
The snake was uninjured and appeared to be in good health Wednesday morning, so the center found a safe open space in Redwood City and released it back into the wild.
Delucchi said gopher snakes are not uncommon in the area and are not dangerous to humans.
The Peninsula Humane Society responds to more than 6,000 wild animal emergencies annually from San Francisco to Santa Clara County, Delucchi said.
Bay City News contributed to this report.
