MUSCATINE, Iowa — Officials in an eastern Iowa city have given a local man 30 days to find new homes for two ball pythons he's been keeping as pets in his apartment.
The Muscatine City Council voted 5-2 last week to grant Anthony Wolfmueller the extension to find a home for the snakes. Previously he had been ordered to remove the snakes from his apartment by Jan. 26.
Police Chief Brett Talkington said keeping the snakes within city limits violates a city ordinance that prohibits dangerous animals, including snakes that are venomous or constrictors.
Wolfmueller told the City Council he was unaware of the ordinance and said the snakes — one 3½ feet long and the other 5 feet long — eat mice and small rats and "have never struck anyone." He said his 6-year-old child regularly handles the snakes.
The city's animal control officer, Steve McGovern, served the removal notice to Wolfmueller after the city's code enforcement officer found the snakes during a property inspection.
Unlike Burmese pythons, which can grow up to 20 feet, the two ball pythons "will never be a harm to anyone," Wolfmueller said.
Councilman Mark LeRette called the city's snake ordinance vague and said the council should consider making changes. The council should consider a length limit, he said, as some snakes grow to only a foot in length and pose no danger to people or pets.
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