LOS ANGELES (AP) – A deadly cobra that mysteriously appeared in a Southern California neighborhood has been taken to the Los Angeles Zoo after being spotted and tracked to a backyard woodpile where animal-control officers captured it.
Zoo officials said Friday that the snake, which is several feet long, is in quarantine.
The albino monocled cobra had been on the loose since at least Monday evening, when it confronted a dog in Thousand Oaks. The veterinarian who treated the animal said it appeared that the dog wasn’t bitten but was hurt while evading the snake.
The cobra apparently escaped from captivity, although authorities have not found the owner. Los Angeles County spokesman Brandon Dowling says investigators are following leads on where the snake came from.
Cobras are generally illegal to own in California.