Florida family finds rare two-headed snake in their home

You never know what the cat will drag in. Pet felines are known for bringing in animals they find outside into the house like birds and mice.

But one cat brought its family a very unexpected surprise—a unique, rare animal like nothing they had ever seen.

Kay Rogers, from Palm Harbor, Florida, was at home when her daughter informed her that her pet cat Olive had brought a snake inside.

And she was caught by surprise when her daughter informed her that the snake had two heads!

Facebook/Kay Rogers

“Originally I thought my daughter was kidding when she said that,” Kay told ClickOrlando.com. “Then I saw him and was amazed, I had never seen anything like that.”

Indeed, it’s a hard sight to believe. The unusual snake looks like a mythological creature. But it’s a healthy, functioning snake, just one born with a rare medical abnormality.

The family sought help identifying the snake, looking for more information. But in the meantime, they took him in and adopted him as their own, fittingly naming him “Dos.”

Kay’s nature-loving daughter felt that they were meant to care for the snake: “See mom? Olive brought him inside because she knew we would save him,” she told her mom.

Facebook/Kay Rogers

While they did the best they could to care for the snake on their own, they noticed that the snake had trouble coordinating its two heads.

Luckily, they found experts from the FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute who shed some light on the situation.

“This phenomenon, termed bicephaly, is uncommon but happens during embryo development when two monozygotic twins failed to separate, leaving the heads conjoined onto a single body,” FWC wrote on Facebook.

“Both head’s tongue flick and react to movement, but not always in the same way.”

A rare two-headed southern black racer was recently found at a residence in Palm Harbor by Kay Rogers and family. This…

Posted by FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute on Wednesday, October 21, 2020

Dos can’t survive in the wild on his own, and the Rogers family decided to hand him over to FWC’s care. The snake is now “being cared-for and monitored by FWC staff.”

But they’ll always remember their unusual friend and the time they had together.

“We are happy to have found him and had him as a little part of our family. I feel like we found him the best place to thrive,” Kay told ClickOrlando. “We really hope he does.”

“They’ve taken such good care of him and we are happy he’s doing so well.”

Wow, we’ve definitely never seen a snake like this! Thank you to this family for taking in this unique creature!

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