'We were like, holy smokes:' Reinforcements called in to help capture ball python

Law enforcement agencies often are contacted for exaggerated emergencies, which turn out to be just another fish tale. That was not the case Monday when the Ashland County Sheriff's Office was called to a barn where a trailer had been removed and a coiled python snake was discovered.

Sgt. Dan Saylor and another deputy went to the farmhouse along US Route 250 East, near the Fin, Feather and Fur store, for a call about a python-like looking snake.

"We went out there thinking it was just some sort of snake that came out for springtime, and by the color and size of it, we determined it was something that was not naturally from Ohio," Saylor said. "It was all balled up, but I would estimate it to be about 5 feet long. Between the homeowner, myself and my partner, we managed to get it into a burlap sack."

Saylor said they called Ohio Department of Natural Resources, which referred them to the Department of Agriculture, but representatives from there only would come out if the snake was over 12 feet long.

Snake handler to the rescue

Another deputy who heard about the situation was aware of a person on the Savannah Fire Department who dealt with snakes.

Milton Geiger is a volunteer on the Savannah, Ashland County and Mifflin fire departments. He and his wife, Lisa, also handle snakes.

Geiger was contacted by Saylor to help with the capture of the python.

Geiger was in a class and unable to help, but his wife Lisa volunteered to rescue the officers from the snake.

Somebody's pet got loose

"She came and looked in the sack and said, 'Oh yes, that's a ball python,' and she picked it up and started unraveling it," Saylor said. "We were like, holy smokes."

Lisa Geiger said the snake was a ball python, native to Africa, and obviously a pet. She said they would post photos of the snake online in hopes of finding the owner.

"We've been doing snake rescues for quite a while now," Milton Geiger said. "Unfortunately there's a big call for it. People go reptile shows and their kids see something they want, then they find out the snake didn't stay small, and they get set loose or neglected, kind of like cats and dogs.

"I've tried to teach various law enforcement classes about snakes," he said. "There was a call in Akron where a lady's snake bit her on the face. Their first thought was to cut the head off the body. That doesn't work. There's a specific way to get the snake to let go."

Milton Geiger has been called several times to Charles Mill Dam for snake bites, he said, and he's had to relocate about six copperheads over the past few years.

This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: Pet ball python rescued by snake handlers in Ashland County