An unwanted shopping partner: Boa constrictor snake found curled up in Target cart in Iowa

A Target customer in Sioux City, Iowa was in for a surprise when they pulled out a cart and found a boa constrictor coiled up in it.

Lindsay Alvarez, a resident of Sioux City, posted a picture of the snake in the Target cart on social media, writing that her daughter spotted "this little guy at Target" on August 13. She did not specify which Target store the snake was found at.

A Target representative, in an email to USA TODAY, confirmed that the snake was indeed found at a store in the city and said that their team acted quickly and animal control removed it from the property.

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While it is not yet clear how the snake made its way to Target, authorities believe the reptile may have gotten inside the store after it stowed away outside in a cart which was then taken into the store. Cindy Rarat, manager of the Sioux City Animal Adoption and Rescue Center told USA TODAY they assume the boa may have either come from an apartment complex close by, escaped from a car or been left by someone.

"We're not exactly sure how it came to be there," Rarat said

The animal was later taken to the Sioux City Animal Adoption and Rescue Center, where it is currently housed. Rarat said that the 4-and-a-half-foot-long snake has been taken care of, is well-fed and is in good health.

Unclaimed

A spokesperson at the facility told USA TODAY that no one has come forward to claim the animal and that a herpetologist from Lincoln, Nebraska has volunteered to take the snake. The herpetologist, who is also a professor, intends to keep it for educational purposes in a classroom. The herpetologist will be collecting the animal on Saturday from the facility, once the seven-day waiting period for claiming the animal ends, the spokesperson said.

Sioux City laws do not allow residents to keep constrictors as pets and if someone comes forward to claim the animal, they will have to show proof of ownership and house the snake outside city limits.

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Preferred pets

Native to Central and South America, boa constrictors typically do not attack humans, according to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute. They are non-venomous and kill their prey by strangling them, as their name suggests. They can live up to 20 years.

Boa constrictors are popular as pets as they are relatively undemanding, as long as their large adult size and space needs are accounted for, as per the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology. In some areas, these reptiles are used to control rodent and opossums populations.

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