TSA finds 4-foot 'emotional support' boa constrictor in woman's carry-on at Tampa airport

[Zorro]

The airline did not allow the snake, named Bartholomew, to come onto the plane.

A Transportation Security Administration officer found an “emotional support” snake in a woman’s luggage at a Tampa International Airport security checkpoint, according to a Friday tweet from a TSA spokesperson.

On Dec. 15, Bartholomew, a 4-foot boa constrictor, was spotted in an image from the security checkpoint X-ray (seen in orange in the top right corner) before the bag could slither onto the flight.

Link to tweet

The snake’s owner told officers her coiled travel mate was her emotional support pet, according to the tweet.

“Our officers at Tampa International Airport didn’t find this hyssssssterical,” the TSA wrote in a punny Instagram post. “Coiled up in a passenger’s carry-on was a 4? boa constrictor! We really have no adder-ation for discovering any pet going through an x-ray machine.”

https://www.tampabay.com/news/tampa/2023/01/09/tsa-finds-4-foot-emotional-support-boa-constrictor-womans-carry-on-tampa-airport/

IMO this really is pushing the "emotional support" envelope.

[GreenWave]

1. She better watch out if Bart develops a real crush on her.

[GenXer47]

2. Florida airports are bonkers

https://www.news-press.com/story/news/2022/12/21/tsa-report-record-number-of-guns-discovered-at-florida-airports-orlando-miami-tampa/69739215007/

What's up with Florida?

[Mme. Defarge]

11. Nothing good.

[Meowmee]

3. Emotional support boa constrictor

😜

[Aristus]

7. Yeah, the whole thing is idiotic.

I stopped writing medical approval notes ages ago for patients and their emotional support yappy dogs with no training that piss and poop everywhere and bite everyone's ankles.

I tell them to follow-up with Behavioral Health. I don't even know if our Behavioral Health division even provides approval notes for them. But it gets them out of my clinic.

[GregariousGroundhog]

5. Snakes on a Plane!

I'm had it with these mother 'effing snakes on this mother 'effing plane!

[Beatlelvr]

6. I feel sorry for the snake

All coiled up in a suitcase? Besides having a moron for an owner of course....

[femmedem]

12. +1

The article doesn't say what happened to the snake.

[sarisataka]

8. My son's emotional support animal

Is a ball python. It's only about 3 ft and I don't think he would try to take it on a plane.

Still I never thought I would see what looked like affection from a reptile. This snake seems to enjoy interacting with people. If there are multiple people it will stay with one person, then go to the next, then the next as if it was sharing time.

I also tell people it plays video games with my son. It will coil around his arm and rest its head on his hand where it can see the screen. He plays in a game group on Sundays and the snake will get as high in the cage as it can at game time. Once my son opens the door it takes position and will stay there the two hours they play.

I would be interested in a herptologist explaining the snake's behavior since it is very different than what I would expect from a reptile.

[jcgoldie]

9. I once smuggled a cat in a duffle bag through the x-ray machine..

...in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico and through customs in Houston then through TSA onto another plane to St.Louis. That was 4 or 5 years ago.

She lives happily in our farm house in Illinois to this day.

[gopiscrap]

10. wow so that means I can bring my pet rat