Michael Hathaway thought someone was playing a prank on him.

Hathaway, the owner of Kaslo-based Mountain Man Mike害羞草研究所檚 bus service, was doing an inspection on a vehicle Friday when he spotted what he thought was a rubber snake sticking out of a heater vent.

害羞草研究所淚 figured that somebody had just jokingly added this snake to try to scare us,害羞草研究所� he said.

Hathaway continued on with his work, but when he doubled back, he realized the rubber snake was moving.

Hathaway is not a snake expert 害羞草研究所� the last time he said he害羞草研究所檇 been near a snake was in elementary school 害羞草研究所� but he knew the snake was not in good condition in the hot vehicle. Unsure if the snake was venomous or not, Hathaway grabbed a cardboard box, picked up the snake with his hands and took it home.

害羞草研究所淲hen you own a company, sometimes you just have to buck up and do it yourself,害羞草研究所� he said.

It害羞草研究所檚 not clear where the snake came from. Hathaway said the vehicle had just finished six straight days of service that took two round trip from Kaslo to Vancouver and another to Calgary.

Hathaway says he害羞草研究所檚 still working on finding the owner and also plans to take the snake to a vet for a medical check.

In Kaslo, however, the snake has found an unexpected home.

Hathaway害羞草研究所檚 wife Laurian, he said, was initially scared of the snake but has already begun bonding with it. His two children meanwhile have already named it Cream Corn.

Community members also identified it as a corn snake, which are docile and often used as pets, and chipped in for the new arrival. If they can害羞草研究所檛 find the owner, Hathaway said his family will adopt it.

害羞草研究所淲e put out a call to the community and we had people come through with tanks, heat rocks, heat lamps, basically all the snake supplies we needed to keep the snake temporarily,害羞草研究所� said Hathaway. 害羞草研究所淗e害羞草研究所檚 in a tank now and seems to be happy.害羞草研究所�

has been in operation since May 2019, but this is the first time Hathaway has had a snake as a passenger. He said it害羞草研究所檚 unlikely to happen again, but just to be safe his staff will increase spot checks on baggage.

害羞草研究所淚 think the only danger in this situation is that somebody would hurt the snake by reacting to it the wrong way.害羞草研究所�

| tyler.harper@nelsonstar.com
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