Black-and-pink coachwhip found in Arizona toilet dodges capture twice before expert grabs it

Responders in Arizona needed three visits spread across two days to remove a black-and-pink snake from a homeowner's toilet in the Catalina Foothills near Tucson. 

What happened?

According to Fox Weather, homeowner Michelle Lespron contacted Bryan Hughes, owner of Phoenix-based Rattlesnake Solutions, after spotting a snake in her toilet that she initially thought was a rattlesnake.

It was actually a black-and-pink coachwhip, which Hughes said was harmless, though it might bite if handled.

The snake was finally secured on the third trip, with the attempts taking place over two days.

"So many people think this is fake, but I guarantee it's real," Lespron said, per Fox Weather. 

Hughes said coachwhips can be particularly difficult to deal with. "They're also very fast and hard to catch," he added. "If you manage to get a hold of one and get bitten by it, it's definitely a decision. That's not an accident. So they're not anything that anyone has to worry about."

After the removal, the snake was released into the wild.

Why does it matter?

While a snake in a toilet can happen, it is extremely rare.

Hughes said that his company gets only one or two such toilet-snake calls each year. Still, the incident points to a larger issue in the Southwest and elsewhere: wildlife and humans are increasingly crossing paths through the systems people build. Hughes explained that snakes can end up in plumbing through septic vaults, other homes, and other unusual routes.

As development encroaches on natural habitats, and snakes and other wildlife lose safe places to live, they'll be pushed closer toward humans in search of food and shelter. 

A frightened homeowner could get hurt trying to remove a wild animal, while a native snake could be killed unnecessarily.

What are people saying?

Hughes assured FoxWeather that this kind of incident was not a reason to panic. 

"If anybody's worried about this or your next action of the day is to call your realtor, don't worry about it," he said.

"You're not going to have this happen," he added. "just once-in-a-million kind of thing."

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