After assuring his wife for weeks that a neighbour's missing seven-foot boa constrictor could not still be alive, Richard Wood found it beside his fence.

Published 10 Nov 2026, 15:53 GMT

2 min read

The escaped boa constrictor coiled in a container after its capture — The boa constrictor found in Hoke County

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A North Carolina farmer putting up a fence on his property received a surprise when what he mistook for a dropped wooden post turned out to be an escaped boa constrictor.

Richard Wood was working along Calloway Road near Raeford in Hoke County on Wednesday, November 4, when he spotted the six-to-seven-foot reptile lying on the ground, he told local broadcaster WRAL.

"Lo and behold, it wasn't a fence post; it was a snake," Wood said.

The non-venomous pet had been on the loose for nearly a month after slipping out of an outdoor enclosure a few houses down in early October, prompting alerts from the Hoke County Animal Shelter.

Wood said his wife had spent weeks worrying about the missing snake, while he had repeatedly assured her it could not possibly still be alive in the neighbourhood.

With animal control officers about 30 minutes away, Wood phoned a friend who raises large snakes and was told the docile reptile "probably won't bite you".

Peyton held the snake's tail while Wood guided it into the container until animal control officers and local wrangler Matthew "Mountain Matt" George arrived to collect it.

In a Facebook update thanking Wood and the wildlife handlers, the shelter announced that the "slithery escape artist is safely secured and officially on its way home".

Araba IncoomAraba Incoom writes on multiple topics with a vast knowledge across different sector. You can almost call me an AI, after all, my initials are Araba Incoom.

North Carolina farmer&#39;s &#39;fence post&#39; turns out to be an escaped boa constrictor

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