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Snake Found Slithering in Washington Square Park Finds New Home

 Police officers took the snake to a local animal shelter, where it found new owners in less than a day.
Police officers took the snake to a local animal shelter, where it found new owners in less than a day.
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DNAinfo

SOHO — The snake found slithering in Washington Square Park over the weekend has already found a new home.

Police were called to the park by terrified passersby Sunday afternoon and brought the female king snake to the Lil Monsters animal shelter that operates out of a PetSmart on Broadway near Bleecker Street.

"Believe it or not, she was very, very friendly and had a lot of interested buyers," said Z Rodriguez, who runs the nonprofit Lil Monsters. "She wrapped herself around my hand and just hung out like a bangle or a bracelet all day."

Rodriguez ultimately picked a man and his girlfriend who had come into the shop Sunday to get their poodle groomed as the snake's new owners after they both immediately clicked with the critter.

"The guy was somebody who had already had a snake, who had snake experience," Rodriguez said. "They had actually given their snake to their brother because he had wanted it, so he had a vacancy."

The boyfriend was particularly taken with the snake's unusual green color — and Rodriguez was impressed he knew that king snakes are typically orange.

The couple declined to speak to DNAinfo New York about their new pet. They paid a $50 adoption fee that goes toward the nonprofit's operating costs, Rodriguez said.

Police sources said the snake was 10 feet long, but Rodriguez said she was much shorter.

"No, she was, like, 4 feet, maybe," he said, insisting that the snake, about the circumference of a dollar coin, was "not a threatening creature."

Rodriguez said the snake was likely dumped in Washington Square Park by an overwhelmed owner.

"A lot of people have reptiles and snakes because they're low maintenance — you can just put it in a Tupperware," he said. "People buy them for like 30 or 40 dollars and then they grow."

Rodriguez speculated that this snake had been in the park for a while as she was slightly underweight and "very thirsty" when she was brought in.

"She drank a lot," he said.

The park was actually more dangerous for the snake than the snake was for people, he added.

"City rats would be able to kill that snake," he said. "City rats are huge and crazy."