10+ Photos Of Animals Who Hit The Genetics Jackpot

In the animal kingdom, there are some animals who have features that go far beyond the normal genetic deviation. You can see dogs with two different eye colors or the cats with unique splashes of color that makes them truly stand out from the rest. All of these things are a result of genetic mutations.

Here are 20 animals who hit that genetic jackpot to brighten up your day with their appearances. Although many people think that “mutation” are bad, these gorgeous creatures are here to prove that when it comes to beauty, mutations can actually be a wonderful thing.

To read more on this story, click here: 10+ Photos Of Animals Who Hit The Genetics Jackpot

Stop Keeping Snakes As Pets

What a terrifying sight for Benton County Sheriff Donald Munson to walk in on — an 8-foot-long python wrapped around a 36-year-old woman’s neck. The tragic incident in Indiana last week highlights just one of many reasons that snakes do not make good pets.

Most people are afraid of snakes. In fact, researchers have found it to be one of the most common phobias, with up to one-third of human beings classed as ophidiophobic. But others, presumably including the victim Laura Hurst, love the animals and keep dozens in small glass tanks throughout their houses with only a small plastic rock and heat lamp to mimic — poorly — the conditions snakes would experience in the wild.

To read more on this story, click here: Stop Keeping Snakes As Pets

Artist Turns Old CDs Into Amazing Lifelike Animal Sculptures

We all talk about recycling and repurposing, but one young artist is walking the talk by transforming broken, discarded CDs and DVDs into gorgeous animal sculptures.Sean Avery is an art teacher in Western Australia who began experimenting with CD and DVD art while he was still at university. He has created dozens of the brightly colored, sparkling sculptures since then.

To read more on this story, click here: Artist Turns Old CDs Into Amazing Lifelike Animal Sculptures

Gigantic Black Snake Slithers Along Subway Platform in New York City: 'This Can't Be Real'

 

Step aside, pizza rat! There's a new animal going viral for their subway antics now.

Video of a gigantic black snake slithering across a New York City subway platform was posted on Twitter, leaving residents and social media viewers scratching their heads and wondering how the reptile made its way onto the station platform in the first place.

Transit worker Canella Gomez shared the video in a Twitter post on Sunday, writing, "Being a #TrainOperator for @NYCTSubway I thought I have seen it all but this can’t be real."

To read more on this story, click here:  Gigantic Black Snake Slithers Along Subway Platform in New York City: 'This Can't Be Real'

Mating Snakes Prompt Closure of Part of Florida Park

LAKELAND, Fla. (AP) — A Florida city shut down a section of a lake Thursday after receiving reports of swarming snakes. Turns out, the slithery creatures were just celebrating Valentine's Day a little early.

The Lakeland Parks & Recreation department wrote on its Facebook page that a group of non-venomous water snakes congregated to mate near a traffic roundabout. It included one photo of the lake shoreline, and a closeup shot of a brown snake nestled in leaves.


To read more on this story, click here: Mating Snakes Prompt Closure of Part of Florida Park

These Incredible Animal Photos Show Why Steve Irwin’s Son Is An Award Winning Photographer

Being part of the legacy that Steve Irwin left behind must be no easy task, but Robert Irwin, his 13-year-old son makes it seem smooth and oh-so-easy. Robert and his family have always been involved with nature, and even as a baby, his love for it was obvious. Now as a young teenager, he has actually traveled around the world with his family, capturing nature while at it and becoming an award-winning photographer – yes, at just 13-years-old!

Regardless of his age, there is no question why his work has been recognized in several contests: the images he captures are raw and pretty up-close, giving people a more intimate glance at nature and wildlife through his images.

To read more on this story, click here: These Incredible Animal Photos Show Why Steve Irwin’s Son Is An Award Winning Photographer

A Young Two-Headed Eastern Copperhead Was Found in Northern Virginia

A young two-headed Eastern Copperhead was found in Northern Virginia. The finder emailed the Virginia Herpetological Society for identification; DGIF was then alerted and the state herpetologist picked up the snake. This week, he brought it to the Wildlife Center for radiographs. Dr. Ernesto [who is a big fan of venomous snakes] examined the baby copperhead.

It appears as though the left head is more dominant – it’s generally more active and responsive to stimulus. Radiographs revealed that the two-headed snake has two tracheas [the left one is more developed], two esophaguses [the right one is more developed], and the two heads share one heart and one set of lungs. Based on the anatomy, it would be better for the right head to eat, but it may be a challenge since the left head appears more dominant.

Wild two-headed snakes are extremely rare – they just don’t live that long. The herpetologist will continue monitoring the snake; if it survives, it will likely be placed in an educational facility.

Please note: This snake is not currently at the Wildlife Center of Virginia; it's in the care of the state herpetologist.

Would You Eat this Albino Burmese Python Cake?

The photo of this Albino Burmese Python looks so real, Francesca Pitcher of North Star Cakes in Kent, U.K., was prompted to add this tagline: "****I DO NOT SELL SNAKES****. This photo is of a snake CAKE made to look like an Amelanistic Burmese Python for a birthday party."

Yes, the snake is a fake. It's a fake snake cake.

And it truly is awesome, as many of the commenters on North Star Cakes' Facebook page have stated emphatically.

"The detail is absolutely spot-on!! As a long-time reptile keeper I know you would do well to advertise this in local pet shops and reptile specialists."

Indeed. Just take a look at this real Albino Burmese Python for comparison sake. The fake snake cake has an incredible resemblance to the real Albino Burmese Python, which is one of the six largest snakes in the world with most averaging 12-feet long. But it can grow up to 19 feet, and, if not handled properly, can be quite dangerous.

The only danger with Pitcher's snake, however, is to the waistline.

According to the UK Daily Mail, Pitcher's now-6-year-old daughter Claudia, who loves reptiles, wanted a spooky-themed birthday party. She wanted something that would scare her friends. Pitcher suggested a snake cake.

She regretted that idea immediately and for good reason. Pitcher has a snake phobia.

From the UK Daily Mail: 

'At first I couldn't even look at the images of them online but as I kept researching them I realised they weren't so bad and had quite beautiful patterns.

'Once I had got over my phobia I just cracked on with it...'

Over the course of three days, Pitcher spent 12 hours baking and shaping sponge layers, using "a white chocolate fondant with special dye to make the skin and replicate the distinctive markings of the dangerous snake," according to the Daily Mail.

As it turned out, none of the kids at the birthday party were afraid of the snake. Instead, they fought over who was going to eat the head.

Would you eat this cake?

For those of you interested in making a Snake Cake!

Some Unusual Shelter Animals You May Not Have Known You Could Adopt

Although dogs and cats remain by far the most common pet to rescue and adopt, other kinds of animals do end up in shelters. From farm animals to small rodents and even reptiles, there are plenty of options if you’re looking to bring home a different kind of furry or scaly — friend.

While some of these animals end up in shelters because an owner moves away, plenty of them are abandoned by “impulse buyers” who change their mind after buying a needy breed of pig or chinchilla, experts say.

For that reason, Dana Puglisi of AdoptaPet.com, which has listings for more than a dozen species of shelter animals, said that it’s important to read up on animal needs if you’re interested in adopting an atypical pet.

“It’s very easy to look at an animal and say, ‘That’s such a cute animal, I want it to be a part of my life,” Puglisi tells NBC. “It’s another thing to take on the actual day-to-day responsibility for caring for that pet.” 

In addition, some states have restrictions on what kind of animal you can keep as a pet, so Puglisi said she also suggests checking local laws before reaching out to a shelter.

Below are some of the unusual shelter animals you may not have known you could adopt:

Cows
Holy cow, indeed! In areas with more farmland, shelters and sanctuaries like Animal Place in Grass Valley, Calif. may have cows that were rescued from factories. Be sure you have the space and resources to adopt a shelter cow, though, as they need at least 80 square feet of space and over 20 gallons of water a day.

Chinchillas
According to ChinchillaRescue.org, chinchillas are noisy and nocturnal, so it’s best to avoid keeping them in their new owner’s bedroom. Since rescue chinchillas are of unknown parentage and may not be neutered, owners should plan to keep them apart from opposite-sex chins in order to avoid accidental breeding.

Pigs
The right breed of pig can make for an adorable rescue animal — and a shelter is often the best way to find one. Puglisi said that more and more pig owners are abandoning their pets after being tricked into bringing home baby farm pigs that put on hundreds of pounds as they grow up. If you have the space, you can adopt one of these larger abandoned pigs, but shelters also have plenty of smaller breeds, like Vietnamese miniature pot-bellies.

Parrots
Parrots (as well as other tropical birds like parakeets) are often left behind at shelters when owners move away or become unable to keep caring for these sometimes needy birds. As with some other animals on this list, though, be sure to check local regulations if you choose to adopt — parrots aren’t allowed to be kept as pets in some states.

Goats
If there’s anything to learn from the recent goat yoga fitness craze, it’s that these farm animals can serve as fun, furry additions to the family. While regular-size goats can be found in some shelters, a few also have pint-sized pygmy goats up for adoption for anyone short on space. Who knows, they might even eat the weeds in your yard.

Horses
Equestrian lovers can adopt either full-size or miniature horses, like Smooshy, a dwarf miniature horse adopted by actress Kaley Cuoco of “The Big Bang Theory.” Mini-horses in particular are seeing a surge in shelters right now, Puglisi said, as “impulse buyers” purchase and then abandon the horses they use to emulate celebrity horse owners.

Snakes
From king snakes to corn snakes to Colombian boa constrictors, there’s plenty of shelter serpents snakes that you can adopt into your home. Most snakes are carnivores or omnivores, and they require a steady diet of other animals in order to be well-fed — so be prepared to keep “mousicles” inside your freezer.

Ferrets
These tail-wagging mammals make for active, friendly pets to adopt or even house temporarily through foster programs for older or sick ferrets. Watch your fingers, though — ferrets are also known for biting.

Bearded Dragons
They may not be quite like the Viking pets in “How to Train Your Dragon,” but shelter bearded dragons can let you support shelters while (sort of) living out a mythical animal fantasy. Sometimes known as “beardies,” these reptiles originated in central Australia and are often kept in zoos. They’re considered one of the easiest reptiles to care for, but still need a specific light pattern and large tank.

A family Going for a Swim Grabs a Pool Noodle - Rattlesnakes Were Living Inside, Fire Dept. Says

A family planning on spending a leisurely hot day in their swimming pool encountered a surprise before ever hitting the water.

When the family in Buckeye, Ariz., grabbed their pool noodles, an adult rattlesnake popped out of one of the recreational floatation devices, according to City of Buckeye Fire Department.

"The snake did not attack, but was concerned about the pool noodles," the fire department posted on its Facebook page, "as there were a couple of young rattlesnakes who were still inside."

To read more on this story, click here: A family Going for a Swim Grabs a Pool Noodle - Rattlesnakes Were Living Inside, Fire Dept. Says 

Would You Eat this Albino Burmese Python Cake?

The photo of this Albino Burmese Python looks so real, Francesca Pitcher of North Star Cakes in Kent, U.K., was prompted to add this tagline: "****I DO NOT SELL SNAKES****. This photo is of a snake CAKE made to look like an Amelanistic Burmese Python for a birthday party."

Yes, the snake is a fake. It's a fake snake cake.

And it truly is awesome, as many of the commenters on North Star Cakes' Facebook page have stated emphatically.

"The detail is absolutely spot-on!! As a long-time reptile keeper I know you would do well to advertise this in local pet shops and reptile specialists."

Indeed. Just take a look at this real Albino Burmese Python for comparison sake. The fake snake cake has an incredible resemblance to the real Albino Burmese Python, which is one of the six largest snakes in the world with most averaging 12-feet long. But it can grow up to 19 feet, and, if not handled properly, can be quite dangerous.

The only danger with Pitcher's snake, however, is to the waistline.

According to the UK Daily Mail, Pitcher's now-6-year-old daughter Claudia, who loves reptiles, wanted a spooky-themed birthday party. She wanted something that would scare her friends. Pitcher suggested a snake cake.

She regretted that idea immediately and for good reason. Pitcher has a snake phobia.

From the UK Daily Mail: 

'At first I couldn't even look at the images of them online but as I kept researching them I realised they weren't so bad and had quite beautiful patterns.

'Once I had got over my phobia I just cracked on with it...'

Over the course of three days, Pitcher spent 12 hours baking and shaping sponge layers, using "a white chocolate fondant with special dye to make the skin and replicate the distinctive markings of the dangerous snake," according to the Daily Mail.

As it turned out, none of the kids at the birthday party were afraid of the snake. Instead, they fought over who was going to eat the head.

Would you eat this cake?

Benefits of Having a Pet

A recent study showed that there are more pets than children in American households. Amazed? Statistics say that there has also been an increase in the number of Indian families opting for pets. Keeping pets at home has several benefits — and if you're among those who has always wanted to keep a pet, let us convince you to go ahead and get one home!

Pets can enhance your mood
Whether you believe it or not, pets are a great way to improve your mood and temperament. Research has shown that people who suffer from various diseases have lesser chances of depression if they keep pets as compared to those who are suffering from similar diseases and don't keep pets.

Help to control blood pressure
Health experts say that dog owners have less blood pressure and heart rates. This eventually reduces the need to take medicines and also helps reduce cholesterol and triglyceride levels.

A source of exercise
Want someone who will accompany you for walks? Dogs can be great companions and will happily go out for walks, at times even urging you for a walk, when you're too tired, thereby keeping you active and fit. Other activities related to pets like feeding, bathing, playing and cleaning are also good ways to exercise.

An antidote for loneliness
No matter how low or lonely you keep, a pet will always be there for you. Whether you want to pour your heart out to them or tell them your secrets, you know it's all safe with them! Pets give you unconditional love and are always faithful.

Reduce stress
Stressed out? Pets are known to reduce stress and anxiety levels. Experts say that people can get relieve from stress and depression, if they spend time with their pets.

Long life
Several studies have revealed that people who tend to spend their time with pets are more likely to live longer than people who don't.

Better social skills
Want to improve your social skills? It is said that people who keep pets are said to be good in their social relations. Kids who grow up with pets at home are always respectful towards living things.

Safety
Having a dog at home is especially good because they also double up as caretakers. No burglar alarm can be better than a dog at home!

Some People Decided to Show How Animals Enhance Their Lives by Getting Animal Tattoos

Is seeing an animal you adore sure to put a smile on your face? Some people decided to show how animals enhance their lives by getting tattoos to elicit that very response with every glance! Take a look at  how a few creative animal enthusiasts took permanent steps to share their appreciation for animals with the world.

Panda Tattoo
Many people don’t know that pandas used to roam all across China millions of years ago. Now, they primarily live in the mountain ranges of central China – which is an interesting fact that you can share with people when they see your adorable panda tattoo!

Kitty Reaching for the Stars Tattoo
Cat owners know that felines are forever curious. This enthralling tattoo perfectly represents the mentality of a feline, showcasing a cute cat reaching for the stars!

Snake Tattoo
It isn’t always the first creature people feel affection for, but there’s a sizeable amount of the population who greatly enjoys the sinuous beauty and stubborn survivalist nature of the snake. This brave woman decided to show her love for this animal with a subtle hand tattoo.

Bear Tattoo
It’s important to bear in mind that those of the ursine lineage are capable of quiet grace and beauty. Though the cute and often clumsy idea of a bear is common in everything from cartoons to wood carvings, a stunning tattoo like this captures the wild elegance in their hearts.

Deer Tattoo
Deer lovers are sure to fawn over the beauty of this tattoo. It’s appropriate that this tattoo was placed on the ankle, as deer are fond of running and jumping around!

Sometimes Subtlety is the Best Option
Not everyone wants to get a prominent tattoo that’s easily seen. A compact tattoo, such as a baby scorpion behind your ear, is an excellent way to represent an animal that you care about without drawing a lot of attention.

Love for the Sea
Maybe your favorite creature resides in the water! If so, you may want to ink your skin with a colorful representation of one of the most popular residents of the ocean – like this fanciful crab!

Eye of the Tiger
The tiger is a stunning animal – and one under threat from habitat loss and poaching. So a tattoo as beautiful as this one is not only a great conversation-starter, it may lead to another great conversation as well.

Family of Elephants

Whether sweet, silly, or captivating, an animal tattoo can be a fun and creative way to show your appreciation for the creatures that inspire us every day. If you’re getting a tattoo, consider going a little wild with it. It’s a great way to share your fascination, and could even start a dialogue that raises awareness about protecting the species you love!

Arlington, Virginia: Owners of Exotic Species as Companion Animals Are Allowed to Keep Them

Arlington, VA - Owners of snakes, panthers and crocodiles: If you already claim a wild and exotic species as a companion animal in this famously liberal suburb, you get to keep them.

If you’ve dawdled over choosing between a skunk or a bobcat, however, you’re out of luck.

The Arlington County Board Tuesday night banned the ownership of a whole variety of species — primates, raccoons, wolves or wolf hybrids, coyotes, squirrels, foxes, leopards, tigers, lions (even in Lyon Park), bears, wildcats, ratites (a diverse group of large, flightless birds), venomous snakes, and certain scorpions, centipedes and spiders.

Hedgehogs are permitted, as are nonvenomous snakes.

“What began as a seemingly straightforward effort to ban exotic pets in Arlington became much more complex and nuanced as the process evolved,” Arlington County Board Chair Jay Fisette said in a statement.

“Ultimately, through a lot of conversation with the community, we were able to adopt a Code amendment that reaches a practical balance of the input received from all sides and is enforceable.”

The county in February first proposed the ban, but it was delayed due to an outcry from pet owners and the state, which pointed out many of the creatures Arlington sought to ban or register were already prohibited.

The change allows Arlington officials to enforce the ban, and require registration of existing exotic pets through the Arlington Animal Welfare League.

An Arizona Man was Hospitalized After Surviving a Rattlesnake Bite to the Face While Attempting to Cook it on a Barbecue Grill

Phoenix, Arizona  - A man was hospitalized after surviving a rattlesnake bite to the face while trying to show off to friends at a party by attempting to cook the reptile on a barbecue grill.

Victor Pratt, 48, was bitten Sept. 7. He was first treated at a hospital near his Coolidge, Ariz., home and then transferred to Banner-University Medical Center in Phoenix. Coolidge is nearly 60 miles southeast of Phoenix.

While celebrating his child's birthday with friends, Pratt said he decided to show them how to catch and cook a rattlesnake after one of the reptiles showed up in his yard during the party.

Pratt, who was interviewed Friday, grabbed the venomous snake and was showing it off to friends and family, posing for several photos. But he lost his grip on the snake's head, and it attacked him.

After being bit twice, once on the chest and once on the face, Pratt said he knew immediately that something was wrong, having been bitten once before when he was 19.

"I said, 'We gotta go now,' because I knew what was going to happen," Pratt said.

He was taken immediately to a local hospital, which doctors said saved his life. He also has received doses of antivenom.

"If an airway is not established in the first few minutes, in our experience less than 15 to 30 minutes, then those patients really don't have a chance to survive,'' said Dr. Steven Curry, Banner hospital's toxicology director.

Curry said getting a tube inserted into the patient's airway is vital, especially in face bites.

"If they can get their airway established, they're very lucky," Curry said. "That is, you're lucky to have been bitten and been able to make it to the hospital in just a few minutes in order to have those emergency procedures done that are needed to save your life."

Pratt was sedated as the procedure was being done, and remained that way for five days, including when he was transferred to the Phoenix hospital.

"I lost five days of memory," Pratt said. "I didn't know where I was for five days."

This kind of memory loss is common, Curry said, because the drugs needed to keep a patient under prevent memories from forming. For their own safety, patients with face bites are kept heavily sedated, and have their hands wrapped in large, bulky bandages to prevent them from pulling out the endotracheal tube.

"(If) that endotracheal tube would come out, because of severe neck swelling, it would be difficult or impossible to immediately put it back in or immediately perform ... an emergency tracheotomy," Curry said. "Because if that tube were to come out, then we would expect that they would be in very big trouble immediately, and perhaps might even die in four to five minutes."

Curry said rattlesnake bites are divided into two categories: bites where the victim didn't know there was a snake or tried to get away, or those where the person recognized there was a snake present but did not immediately try to get away.

Most bites, he said, are the latter kind.

Rattlesnake venom is toxic and can cause swelling, paralysis and numbness at the site of the bite, damaging the tissue. It can cause a person's airwaves to swell to the point of blocking air, and cause internal bleeding.

Curry said seeking medical care quickly is critical, noting that home treatments are a mistake.

"First-aid measures such as tourniquets, ice, incisions or taking the time to apply suctions ... are dangerous and harmful," he said. "Or completely ineffective, as in the case of suction."

The common denominator across all snake-bite deaths in Arizona, he said, was the victim not receiving medical attention immediately.

Often, this is because the victim is out hiking, or in an area far from civilization, Curry said. But in other cases, it's because they thought they could treat themselves.

Banner Hospital treats, on average, 70 snake-bite victims a year, Curry said. While face bites such as Pratt's make up less than 1% of them, they are often the most serious.

Pratt, however, said he was done dealing with the venomous reptiles.

"Ain't gonna play with snakes no more," he said.

Video Captured a Massive King Cobra Appearing to Drink Out of a Man’s Water Bottle

Video captured a massive king cobra appearing to drink out of a man’s water bottle amid extreme droughts across southern India.

The extremely venomous reptile ― described by Caters News as 12-feet long ― is seen turning to the higher ups, who cautiously pour the water while holding its tail and a hook near its head, presumably in case it turns on them. The people in the video are wildlife rescue workers, according to Caters.

The video was reportedly shot from a village in Kaiga township. A similar video uploaded to YouTube in 2014 shows a man sharing a drink with another cobra but in an unknown location. (Talk about friends in low places.)

According to Smithsonian’s National Zoo, king cobras can grow up to 18 feet in length. Though they’re considered to be aggressive snakes, they’re said to attack people only when cornered or trying to protect their eggs.

“Throughout its entire range from India to Indonesia, the king cobra causes fewer than five human deaths a year, about one-fifth as many as caused by rattlers in North America,” the zoo’s website states.

A Startling Discovery Was Made Inside a Home in Jupiter, Florida: 100 Dead Pythons

A woman who neighbors say lived alone and kept mostly to herself shared her home with many animals, and a lot of them were found dead.

Katie McGinness, a mother of two, has walked her dog past the home at 132 Timberline Drive many times.

She’s shocked to learn the lady living there had approximately 100 dead snakes in a bedroom.

“I was just amazed,” said McGinness.

“It was just chaotic. I mean we had cops, we had the fire department,” said Rob Long, who lives next door to 132 Timberline Drive.

On February 16, police were called out to do a welfare check and found deplorable conditions. They says the entire floor of the house was covered with animal feces, and in a bedroom there were numerous plastic bins containing dead pythons.

“I mean why would anyone have 100 snakes?” asked Long.

The dead snakes were ball pythons, which are not poisonous and grow to 3-4 feet long.

“I was stunned, saddened because I watched them take some of the animals out,” McGinness said.

“I feel sorry for her, ‘cause I guess, I don’t know if she doesn’t have anyone to ask for help or she just got over her head with what she was doing,” Long said.

A local wildlife expert says for one person, feeding and taking care of 100 snakes at home would be practically a full time job.

“It’s just a sad situation. I’m going to assume that she was an animal lover, as we all are around here. However it just kind of got away from her,” said Amy Kight, animal care director at Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter.

Neighbors say they shudder to think what might’ve happened if the snakes got loose in the neighborhood.

“That’s crazy. But it’s scary too, because if one of them escapes it’s scary,” said Sophia Simpson, 10, a neighbor.

Besides 100 dead snakes, authorities also removed some live animals, including two dogs, a couple of tortoises and parakeets and two snakes and an African gray parrot.

A Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control official said Thursday night as far as he knows, all of the animals have been adopted out.

The woman who had the dead snakes in her home, Jennifer Morrison, 59, was cited for confining animals without sufficient food and water.

Daniel Kopulos, a Wildlife Conservationist Who Owned an Exotic Pet Shop: Charged with Animal Cruelty

Nausea struck Corrie Butler as soon as she stepped inside the white clapboard home in Weston, Conn.

The stench — a stomach-churning fusion of feces and putrefying flesh, baked in months of summer heat — was unlike anything the experienced animal rescuer had ever encountered. It overwhelmed her, even though she was in a hazmat suit, with her face hidden behind a respirator mask.

If the smell was revolting, the horrifying scene inside the dilapidated house was even worse: Hundreds of snakes and exotic birds — some of them dead — were packed inside the cluttered, darkened rooms, according to Butler, a facility manager at Rhode Island Parrot Rescue.

Some of the animals were trapped in stacks of bug-infested cages and aquariums; others were hidden beneath rotting piles of trash, cobwebs and debris. In some areas of the house, the floor was carpeted with several inches of urine-soaked refuse, birdseed and desiccated animal remains.

Wherever rescuers turned, it seemed, more suffering awaited.

In one room, a toucan beak was found among the debris. In another, a pillowcase full of snakes was discovered in a drawer, where rescuers estimated it had been for months.

Somehow, those snakes — and close to 50 other serpents — were still alive, though barely. But the 1,500-square-foot house contained more than 100 dead reptiles, many of them stuffed in bags and left to die.

The brightly colored birds — lories, rare macaws, a laughing kookaburra, cockatoos, parrots and parakeets — had fared no better. Inside cages caked in filth, emaciated creatures had turned to self-mutilation and begun plucking their vibrant plumage. Rescuers found others sitting in piles of excrement more than a foot high, often beside the decomposing carcasses of their cage mates.

Deprived of water, unable to bathe and covered in so much urine their feathers had begun to fall out, some birds looked “melted,” one rescuer said. Instead of chirping or imitating human voices, the birds were eerily silent.

“It was terrible, like something from a horror movie,” Butler said.

What made it even more disturbing was the identity of the home’s owner: Daniel Kopulos, a wildlife conservationist who owned an exotic pet shop in Manhattan.

Kopulos does not have a history of harming animals, investigators say. In fact, he was widely admired as a force for good — a dedicated advocate for endangered birds and other threatened species.

But rescuers said it was the worst case of animal hoarding they’ve ever known — a case so unsettling that many are struggling to move past what they saw. Butler, for one, said she has had trouble sleeping since the rescue operation at what the local newspaper dubbed the “Weston House of Horrors.”

Kopulos was formally charged with animal cruelty Tuesday after surrendering to the authorities, according to the Weston Forum. Weston Police Sgt. Patrick Daubert described Kopulos as “very cooperative.”

Kopulos is scheduled to appear in Norwalk Superior Court on Oct. 24. If convicted, he faces a $1,000 fine and up to a year in prison, the Forum reported.

Kopulos could did not immediately respond to a request for comment after he was charged.

He declined repeated attempts to be interviewed by The Washington Post in the weeks prior to his surrender, but said in brief emails that the case “has destroyed my life, my reputation, and is spilling over to my employees and others that are close to me.” People close to him are being harassed by “animal welfare people,” he wrote, adding that he worried about the “devastating effects” a story about him might have on his conservation work.

“There is obviously another side to the story,” he wrote last month, without elaborating.

“Behind the reported story is a real person whose life is being destroyed,” he added.

[In Indiana hoarder couple’s home, police find a ‘neglected child’ — and 111 cats]

Police were called to the home on Sept. 15 for an “odor investigation.” Responding officers were so overwhelmed by the noxious air that they had to retreat before calling the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection.

“You could compare the smell to a dead body,” Daubert, the police sergeant, told The Post. “To enter the home, you had to have a respirator.”

Firefighters, health officials, hazardous materials workers, veterinarians and authorities from the state Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security were eventually called to assist.

Over the course of 12 grueling hours, Butler and other rescuers removed about 220 non-venomous reptiles and birds worth more than $100,000 from the two-bedroom home and a barnlike building on the 3.3-acre property.

There were so many animals, rescuers said, that they had to be transported to facilities in a 34-foot horse trailer.

Police said the 41-year-old Kopulos — who purchased the property in 2009 — was living at the residence, without running water, when the grisly discovery was made. The day authorities arrived, Kopulos told them he planned to spend the night in the house; but he was not allowed inside, and the property is now condemned, authorities say.

Kopulos was perhaps best known as the owner of Fauna, an exotic pet store on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Through the store, he became known as a force for good; in 2011, the New York Times noted that “Fauna’s mission is education and conservation. Impulse buyers beware: Mr. Kopulos will sell you a bird only if he approves of you. A mandatory veterinary check-up is built into the price. Not that the birds are ailing: it’s further education for owners.”

The paper referred to Kopulos as “the soft-spoken bird whisperer,” and he even appeared on NBC’s “Today” show.

“We are very picky about who gets animals from here,” he told the Epoch Times in 2013. “We spend a lot of time speaking to them, we try to meet the entire family.”

“I find it more effective to talk to the child then the parents,” he added. “It’s a long-term commitment. We don’t have anything here that lives less than 10-12 years.”

The New York Times reported that Fauna had 700 animals in the store at any given time, and there were another 400 “in various stages of being bred, hatched or hand-raised” at Kopulos’s home and aviary in Weston. Among that population, the paper reported, were endangered species that Kopulos bred for conservation and not commercial purposes.

Presumably, rescuers said, these were some of the same animals that were found dead and dying at his home earlier this month.

Fauna’s Manhattan location has closed. The store was thought to be moving to Yonkers, but calls to the number listed on the Fauna website were not answered, and voice-mail messages were not returned. The store’s social media accounts have also disappeared.

The cruelty allegations against Kopulos have shocked the conservation community and those who have worked with him.

Photographer Kathryn Elsesser traveled to Guatemala with Kopulos for several weeks in 2012 to document his efforts to teach local veterinarians about macaw husbandry and chick rearing. His goal, she said, was to start a nonprofit organization to aid scarlet macaw conservation.

Kopulos seemed to care deeply about the birds, Elsesser said. Even minor details — the type of plastic used in the animals’ feeders, the best way to mix their food — merited grave concern, she recalled.

“He was very gentle, and he was an amazing teacher,” she said. “He was so knowledgeable. He gave off the impression of being someone who was a trained veterinarian. You could tell this was a passion of his.”

He never displayed any behavior, she said, that could have hinted at a penchant for hurting animals.

“Not at all,” she said. “That was not the Daniel that I knew.”

The reasons people begin hoarding wildlife vary, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.

Researchers have linked the practice to obsessive compulsive disorder in the past, but newer theories suggest depression, paranoia and “attachment disorders in conjunction with personality disorders” can play a role.

“Some animal hoarders began collecting after a traumatic event or loss, while others see themselves as ‘rescuers’ who save animals from lives on the street,” the ASPCA reports.

Hoarders come from many backgrounds, in many ages, according to the ASPCA, but they often share one thing in common: “A failure to grasp the severity of their situation.”

They also fail to recognize the suffering animals are experiencing in their care, the ASPCA says: “Research shows many hoarders are beginning to set themselves up as ‘rescue shelters,’ complete with non-profit status. They may appear to be sensible people, persuasively conveying their love for animals and readiness to take those who are sick and with special needs.”

[Animal hoarding isn’t just gross, it’s a recognized psychiatric disorder]

Valerie Ashley, the director of Rhode Island Parrot Rescue, said it’s hard to understand how a wildlife lover could relegate “some of the most beautiful birds on the planet” to filthy chicken-wire cages and bug-infested breeder boxes. Given the animals’ intelligence and their need for stimulation, Ashley compared the treatment to putting a special-needs child in solitary confinement — for months.


“How can a human being live in a house with animals dying around them?” she asked. “Maybe he’s a monster or maybe he was dealing with depression. … But I know people who even at their worst can still say, ‘Please take care of my animal or my child because I can’t do it.’

“Instead, he just walked away and let them starve,” she said.

Five of the birds, out of a total of 118 rescued by Rhode Island Parrot Rescue, have since died — and it will take months to nurse the others back to mental and physical health, Ashley said. Even more animals were removed from the property by other New England rescue groups.

In the media, Kopulos portrayed himself as an environmentally conscious business owner with a lifelong love of wildlife. He told the Epoch Times that he was raised on a farm in Nashville, where he began caring for injured raccoons and squirrels at any early age. He said he got his first bird when he was 11 and began breeding them a year later.

“Every since I was little, I always knew I was innately drawn to animals,” he told the newspaper. “Birds are so intelligent and emotionally driven. They’re very connected, when a bird chooses you that’s a very special thing.”

Kopulos told the New York Times that when he was 12, he rescued a macaw named Patches from a Tennessee pet store. More than three decades later, the same bird could be found at Fauna, riding on the shoulders of employees “like a feathered hood ornament.”

Rescuers said they do not know what happened to Patches or whether he’s among the massive flock of rescued animals whose names they don’t know.

Ashley said the belief that Kopulos’s home was a rescue shelter led many people to hand their pets over to him when they could no longer care for their animals.

Now, she said, those same people are calling her to find out whether their former pets are dead.

On his Facebook page, Kopulos has railed against animal mistreatment in recent months. In July, he posted an article about teenagers suspected of beating porcupines to death in New York.

“Since when is animal cruelty not animal cruelty?” he wrote. “‘Nuisance’ species or not, it’s animal cruelty!”

“People are a nuisance,” he added, “but you don’t see me running around beating people to death.”

Rescuers said these lories had nails so long, the birds were unable to walk. (Rhode Island Parrot Rescue)

                                  Daniel Kopulos’s home in Weston.

               Daniel Kopulos feeds two Persian Turacos at his exotic pet store.