Pet Snake Swallows Heating Pad

X-ray of the red-tailed boa constrictor, showing the heating pad's control unit and wiring inside the snake's stomach.

KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. - A boa constrictor can swallow a lot. But a heating pad? Well, it wasn't plugged in.

Ron and Bonnie Probst took their 8-foot pet, Teardrop, to the animal clinic after it swallowed its prey.

The object - heating pad, cord and control unit - showed up plainly on the X-ray taken by the surprised veterinarian, Dr. James Gansberg.

The 2-year-old snake was shaking off any worries, seemingly happy with a nice, big meal, Gansberg said.

``This heating pad apparently satisfied all the criteria for food as far as this snake was concerned,'' he said. ``It was warm and fuzzy and had some hard objects inside that must have felt something like bones.''

Still, Gansberg went ahead and removed the heating pad. General anesthesia kept Teardrop from feeling any pain during the 2-hour surgery.

During the past 16 years, Gansberg has worked on sick ostriches and even an iguana with a broken leg. But, he said, ``This was definitely the most interesting foreign body we've removed from any species.''