Three dead pythons have been found in woodland in South Lanarkshire in what the Scottish SPCA describe as a “very unusual incident”.
The animal charity was notified about the first snake by a member of the public, who found its body on December 18 in a wooded area near the village of Carstairs.
Officers were then alerted to another two pythons, also dead, at the same spot on December 21. They also found a deceased cat just a few metres away from the reptiles.
Scottish SPCA inspector Dawn Robertson said: “Sadly, the snakes were already dead when they were discovered.
“The person who alerted us to the first body found it at around 10.30am in woodland between Carstairs village and the Clyde Valley Nursing Home.
“We were then alerted to a further two dead snakes at around 10.30am three days later in the same area.
“When I attended the second call, I also came across the body of a cat at the foot of a nearby tree a few metres from the snakes.
“The snakes are all adult royal python and about one metre in length.
“The black and white cat was unfortunately not microchipped.”
Inspector Robertson is looking into how the snakes came to be there and asks anyone who knows anything to get in touch with the Scottish SPCA.
She added: “Although we can’t be certain of the circumstances surrounding these deaths, it’s certainly a very unusual incident and we’re keen to establish how the bodies came to be in that stretch of woodland.
“If anyone recognises these snakes, or the cat, and knows who may have owned them, we would urge them to contact us as soon as possible by calling our confidential animal helpline on 03000 999 999.”
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