Pythons as Pets

QUESTION: If our CC&Rs don’t restrict it, can an owner have a python as a pet? A member found a python that got loose in their garage and the owner still has another one in his unit.

ANSWER: Yes, pythons can be restricted, even if your CC&Rs are silent on the issue.

Domesticated Animals. Normally, CC&Rs have language limiting pets to usual domesticated cats, dogs, fish and birds. A python is neither usual nor domesticated. Most people consider them quite scary. If you were rummaging around in your garage, which would you rather be surprised by–a puppy or a 10-foot snake? As a “pet” you can’t pet them like a kitten, you can’t let them slither around the property unattended, and if you value your life you can never sleep with them. Feeding them is not for the squeamish, not to mention the terrified mice.

Can Be Deadly. Pythons can grow to 23 feet and weigh up 250 pounds. Even though they are not venomous, they can deliver a nasty bite. They are generally docile, until they’re not. A large python can easily kill a person. Last month, one nearly crushed to death a pet store owner before police were able to pry it off him. It was wrapped around his head, neck, and torso. In 2013, two young brothers were strangled in their sleep by a python. In 2009, a python crushed the life out of a two-year-old girl while she slept in her crib. When a python is hungry, people and pets are not safe. Pythons cannot be trained as service animals and if someone claims it’s a “therapy” animal, the person truly needs therapy.

RECOMMENDATION: Owners can give their snakes cute names (Monty comes to mind) but they remain creepy and deadly and associations can ban them if they so choose. A prohibition can be done by amending CC&Rs or by a simple rule change.