Windy Tuck's family thought they were looking at a dirty hose tucked under the hood of their car outside their West Allis home. It was a live, four-foot boa constrictor. Tuck and her husband backed away from the vehicle as the reality of what they'd found set in, and within about 10 minutes, a reptile rescue expert had the snake safely removed with no injuries to anyone involved.
The discovery happened while Tuck's husband was working on an older car parked outside the family's home, according to TMJ4 News. The Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission directed the family to Cindy Steinle, a reptile rescue expert who identified the animal as a boa constrictor from photos before arriving on scene. Tuck described the snake as appearing “alive and huge,” and said she never wants to experience anything like it again.
How The Snake Ended Up In The Engine Bay
Steinle told the outlet the boa appeared healthy. She believes the snake may have been an escaped or abandoned pet, though she said it was not an illegally owned animal, and its exact origin remains unclear.
Boa constrictors are not native to Wisconsin, and Steinle has rescued more than 100 of them over more than 30 years working with reptiles. She founded Small Scale Reptile Rescue.
What Happens To The Snake Now
The boa will remain at MADACC during a mandatory stray hold period before it can be put up for adoption if no owner comes forward. Under Wisconsin Statutes 173.13 and 173.21, stray animals found within Milwaukee County must be held for four full days plus the intake day before ownership can transfer, according to the Wisconsin Humane Society. MADACC serves as the centralized animal control shelter for all 19 cities and villages within Milwaukee County, taking in more than 12,000 stray, abandoned, and rescued animals each year.
The available reporting does not establish whether West Allis restricts constricting snakes by size, so whether the snake's still-unidentified owner might face any city scrutiny remains an open question. Steinle maintains the animal was not illegally owned.
A Familiar Problem With Exotic Pet Enclosures
Steinle explained that snakes typically escape captivity through improper enclosures — reptile owners sometimes mistakenly use fish aquariums with screen tops, which a boa constrictor can pop open to get loose. She said secure reptile cages should instead include locking doors to prevent this kind of escape. Wisconsin remains one of only five states without comprehensive statewide bans or licensing requirements for keeping dangerous exotic animals, according to a 2015 Wisconsin Watch article, leaving exotic reptile regulation largely up to individual municipalities like West Allis.
That patchwork is distinct from broader state and federal regulation of reptiles and amphibians; the available reporting does not establish a specific rule or oversight structure for non-native species like pet boas. Steinle said anyone who finds a reptile that does not belong in the wild should call MADACC, and advised that people who encounter an exotic reptile outdoors should contact local animal control or an animal rescue organization rather than approach it themselves.
Not The First Time A Snake Has Sought Shelter In A Car
The available reporting does not verify the cited 104.1/103.7 The Ranch account of a python in Omro, the Delafield account of a boa in a car, or the BBC account of a six-foot boa in Leicestershire.
The available reporting does not establish whether Small Scale Reptile Rescue worked alongside MADACC and local law enforcement on a prior Milwaukee animal-cruelty investigation. Hoodline previously covered a mystery snake dumped near a rural road, underscoring how often loose exotic reptiles turn up unexpectedly across the state. For now, the West Allis boa waits out its stray hold at MADACC while its origin remains unresolved.
