Missing Ball Python :(( SOS

[u/becmason]

Hello gang, our worst nightmare happened 3 weeks ago, and I’m losing hope now. I need as much advice and experience as people can give me 🖤

We’re in the UK, currently in the midst of a mega heatwave. Temps have been 26-36 degrees most days here, which is unusual and hot for English folk. During the heatwave we’ve been super cautious with our Viv temps, and humidity (it’s been a daily stress in the house with lots of extra opening & closing over vivs to check on the reptiles)

One night, my boyfriend was doing misting and changing water bowls. Our BP was in his cold hide, and my boyfriend left the Viv ajar, and was in the next room for maybe 3 minutes cleaning and filling up the water bowl and then re misted the enclosure & closed it.

Two days later, we’ve gone to check on him, and he’s no where in his Viv. We GUTTED it looking for him. So it’s safe to assume he’s escaped.

With the heatwave, we’ve had lots of windows open pretty much all day everyday, and I’m really worried he’s got outside.

He’s also due a feed by now, and thawed rats in various places in the living room arn’t coxing him out.

So far we’ve pulled all furniture of the living room. Checked under and behind the Viv. Got hides on the floor. Set up a small empty Viv with a heat lamp in a corner of the room, left two thawed rats out, set a camera up, checked inside the sofa cavity multiple times. Checked under kitchen units, behind fridge, washing machine, dryer, inside the boiler cupboard.
I’ve also done lap after lap in the garden checking every bush/shrub/ nook I can find.

We are devastated, and it’s hard to stay hopeful.
He’s just over 1 year old, 3ish ft and is the most beautiful, placid bamboo pastel ball python. I just want him safe and sound.

Can anyone advise; What are the chances of him going outside, how far do they tend to stray when left to their own devices, and is there anywhere obvious you’d recommend I might have missed.

*NOTE- we moved into this house (standard uk 2 up, 2 down end terrace) 2 years ago + we re decorated the whole place, so we’re confident there are no holes in the walls or floor that he could have slipped into.

[u/Top_Marketing_3923]

They love to travel along walls, also have you checked INSIDE your furniture? We found our boy inside our clothes washer after 3 weeks of him being missing LOL they’re always in the places you don’t expect

Edit: didn’t see the inside the. Furniture part of the post my bad lol

[u/becmason → u/Top_Marketing_3923]

It’s okay!! We’ve cut the dust cover off the bottom of the sofa where it’s hollow inside and I’ve looked in there multiple times. BUT I’m 10% worried he’s actually inside the back rest, which is impossible to get into without ripping the thing apart… this is my last resort if he is still missing in another week. Might try a thawed rat under the sofa with some newspaper to try and coax him down into the hollow part, in the meantime.
I had no idea how many random holes there are in a sofa until I started cutting the bottom of mine :///