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Ky. Boy Finds Two-Headed Snake

Posted on: Thursday, 16 October 2003, 06:00 CDT

Hunter York was afraid of snakes, but he couldn't resist the two-headed reptile he found. Hunter, 10, said he picked up the black king snake with a stick, then noticed it grabbed the stick with both heads.

"I ran in the house and said, 'Dad, this snake has two heads.' And he said, 'What?'" Hunter said.

Hunter said the snake "kind of freaked me out a little bit."

The 8 1/2-inch female reptile hasn't eaten since Hunter found it Oct. 4.

Hunter's father, Rodney York, loaned the snake Tuesday to Bowling Green snake hobbyist Scott Petty to see whether he could induce it to eat.

"We couldn't force-feed it, because we don't know which head eats," York said.

York said he jokingly named the snake Mary-Kate and Ashley, because those were the first names of twins that came to mind.

York said he's considering a brief stint in show business for the snake once he learns more about it.

"If they're that rare, I'm going to hit up (talk-show hosts David) Letterman, (Jay) Leno and everybody I can think of," he said. "I'm going to milk it for all it's worth."

Ed Zimmerer, a Murray State University biology professor and herpetologist, estimated the occurrence of a two-headed snake at 1 in 10,000.

"They usually don't live too long," he said.

The snake might be unable to determine which is the dominant head or have some internal problems that interfere with eating, he said.

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