# Snake eats whole sheep **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 6, 2006, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708 "2006-09-06T22:47:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 11:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/21 "2006-09-07T11:19:51Z")
[QUOTE=Hal Briston] …and later than expected. My wife and I guessed it would take seven replies 'til someone make a comment. [/QUOTE] We love you Hal, you know that. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/22 "2006-09-07T11:53:44Z")
[QUOTE=wheelie] Remember what happened to the python that ate an alligator in Florida last year? [Link.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4313978.stm?ls) [/QUOTE] Yike. I saw that earlier, but somehow this never fully penetrated to my atention: > [@](#): > > Burmese pythons - many of whom have been dumped by their owners - have thrived in the wet and hot climate of Florida’s swamps over the past 20 years. :eek: I… think I won’t go camping in Florida any time soon. Unless it’s at the top of a tree. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/23 "2006-09-07T12:31:53Z")
Don’t worry. Burmese pythons are pretty darned harmless. They’re type prototypical “huge snakes” that you see in the movies, precisely because they are so docile. Don’t know why this one went after a gator, but to the best of my knowledge, they’ve never been known to attack humans. ---
**Author:** ![Mindfield](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mindfield/32/19759_2.png) [@Mindfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mindfield)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/24 "2006-09-07T13:37:29Z")
[QUOTE=A.R. Cane] Here’s a another snake story that appears to be true and possibly even more bizarre. [http://www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?issue\_date=07-19-2006&ID=2005111410](http://www.mtexpress.com/index2.php?issue_date=07-19-2006&ID=2005111410) [/QUOTE] That’s brilliant! No more need to sun itself to stay warm – it just needs an electrical outlet! ---
**Author:** ![Hunter\_Hawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/50afbb/32.png) [@Hunter\_Hawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hunter_Hawk)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/25 "2006-09-07T15:28:58Z")
[QUOTE=JThunder] Don’t worry. Burmese pythons are pretty darned harmless. They’re type prototypical “huge snakes” that you see in the movies, precisely because they are so docile. [/QUOTE] [Most of the time](http://www.nbc6.net/news/9789309/detail.html), [anyway](http://www.canoe.ca/NewsStand/LondonFreePress/News/2005/05/05/1026285-sun.html). (In fairness, it doesn’t look like the news reports name the specific type of python, but still.) ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/26 "2006-09-07T15:45:02Z")
Fair enough, **Hunter Hawk**. In those cases though, I rather doubt that the pets were being aggressive, especially if they were long-term pets. It’s possible that they were seeking body warmth, for example, and that they accidentally squeezed their owners too hard. Or if they had been antagonized somehow, they might have responded in kind (although I would expect a snake to bite rather than constrict in such circumstances). At any rate, these seem like isolated incidents that don’t necessarily indicate aggressive behavior on the part of the snakes in question. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/27 "2006-09-07T16:07:44Z")
[QUOTE=Eve] That’s gonna go _right_ to its hips. [/QUOTE] Now we’ve offended Hal _and_ Earl Snake-hips Tucker! ---
**Author:** ![redtail23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/3e96dc/32.png) [@redtail23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/redtail23)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/28 "2006-09-07T16:12:25Z")
**Hunter Hawk** , IMO those were their own damn faults. You do NOT handle a snake that large alone, not if you’ve got any brains at all. A snake that size weighs somewhere around 80 pounds, if it’s in good condition, and they are unbelievably _ **STRONG** _ - that weight is all bone and muscle. It takes several people to handle an unruly snake (e.g., one that’s annoyed or frightened) of that size without someone (and/or the snake) getting hurt. A fourteen foot snake can easily kill you without even meaning to hurt you, if they get wrapped around your neck and chest. I’m talking about asphyxiation just from the pressure they exert in moving around, not from them trying to constrict. I’d bet that’s the case in the Indiana story; the Sweden story doesn’t give as much detail. Some basic rules for snake handling are (1) for snakes more than a couple feet long, don’t ever let them wrap around your neck, and (2) don’t handle anything over about eight feet without another person present. Doing either of those is a good way to get dead, quick, without any intent of harm on the part of the snake. On the pic - I dunno. It does look a bit funky. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/29 "2006-09-07T16:40:01Z")
I’m tired of these MOTHER FUCKING SNAKES eating these MOTHER FUCKING SHEEP!! ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/30 "2006-09-07T16:54:23Z")
[QUOTE=Zebra] Does this make the snake a cottonmouth? [/QUOTE] It may result in woolly-headed ideas. ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/31 "2006-09-07T18:34:32Z")
[QUOTE=Hal Briston] …and later than expected. My wife and I guessed it would take seven replies 'til someone make a comment. [/QUOTE] Mrs Hal: “Hi Hal, what’s this thread about?” Hal: “Mutton, honey” ---
**Author:** ![Hunter\_Hawk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/50afbb/32.png) [@Hunter\_Hawk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hunter_Hawk)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/32 "2006-09-07T19:30:25Z")
[QUOTE=redtail23] **Hunter Hawk** , IMO those were their own damn faults. You do NOT handle a snake that large alone, not if you’ve got any brains at all. [/QUOTE] True dat. Of course, my personal strategy for handling snakes that size is “run away shrieking in terror.” A couple weeks ago, I saw some show along the lines of “Snakes Are Gonna Kill Yo Ass” on one of the infotainment channels, which covered yet another death of a python owner. The general conclusion was that the owner was a dumbass but the snake was just being a snake. ---
**Author:** ![xnylder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/bbce88/32.png) [@xnylder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xnylder)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/33 "2006-09-07T19:46:28Z")
At least nobody mistook it for a hat. (Bien non, ce n’est pas obscure du tout!) ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/34 "2006-09-07T20:13:26Z")
[QUOTE=xnylder] At least nobody mistook it for a hat. [/QUOTE] Antoine? Is that you? ---
**Author:** ![Godfrey\_Daniels](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Godfrey\_Daniels](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Godfrey_Daniels)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/35 "2006-09-07T21:51:12Z")
[QUOTE=Eve] That’s gonna go _right_ to its hips. [/QUOTE] Now _that_ was funny!!! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Aunt\_Flow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ed655f/32.png) [@Aunt\_Flow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aunt_Flow)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/36 "2006-09-07T22:48:39Z")
What in the world do you mean photoshopped? I looked and looked and could NOT see anything that even vaguely resembled the shape of a sheep. Please enlighten me o.O It’s a bulk of dead fleshy…sheep. You can even see one of the feet sticking out of his mouth. And as for throwing it up, I don’t think it would be very easy at all to expunge something of that size and girth from the body. Chances are the sheep was resting or maybe even starting the birthing process which would make it even more easy prey. ---
**Author:** ![Morgyn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/morgyn/32/3041_2.png) [@Morgyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgyn)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/37 "2006-09-07T22:51:26Z")
[QUOTE=xnylder] At least nobody mistook it for a hat. [/QUOTE] Jimmy Thurber, are you _sure_ that’s not a hat? ---
**Author:** ![Kairos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecc23a/32.png) [@Kairos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kairos)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/38 "2006-09-07T22:57:14Z")
[QUOTE=xnylder] At least nobody mistook it for a hat. [/QUOTE] You’re my new best friend. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/39 "2006-09-07T23:05:49Z")
[QUOTE=Aunt Flow] I looked and looked and could NOT see anything that even vaguely resembled the shape of a sheep. [/QUOTE] I really hope that I am being whooshed and that you really did not miss the obvious image. **Morgan** and **Kairos** , to which Thurber story or cartoon to you allude? ( **JThunder** ’s reference I got.) ---
**Author:** ![guizot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guizot/32/3636_2.png) [@guizot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guizot)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2006, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708/40 "2006-09-07T23:17:11Z")
[QUOTE=wheelie] Remember what happened to the python that ate an alligator in Florida last year? [Link.](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4313978.stm?ls) [/QUOTE] Yeah, I remember; but an alligator is elongated, and wouldn’t require as much stretching as a sheep, I would imagine. In fact, in Griffith park I came across a garner snake that was cosuming a lizard that was proportionally the same size as an alligator would be to a large python. Of course, alligators can vary in size. My point is that at some point, a snake will not be able to stretch any further, and will give up trying to swallow something that is too big, if it should happen to be able to kill it. I mean, at some point, should you have no ability to chew, you’d probably give up trying to swallow a steak whole, no matter how tempting. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/snake-eats-whole-sheep/371708.md?page=3)