Cristmas tree critter for the holiday

You can shake them and blow them, but, that doesn't mean your Christmas tree is going to be free of critters. Just ask this Florida couple that ended up with an added bonus in their tree this year.

In Atlantic Beach, Fl. Mr. and Mrs. Olson purchased their yearly live Christmas tree, after 30 years of doing so, from a tree lot and brought their beauty home. Mr. Olsen shook it the tree out and even took the blower to it to get rid of any loose leaves and debris after it had set outside for a few days and brought it into the home. Three days later when Mrs. Olsen was decorating their tree, she leaned in and placed the star on the top, then was arranging the lights upon it when she discovered she had an extra visitor hanging around the tree, in the form of a corn snake.

Now corn snakes, who are also known as rat snakes, are usually pretty docile and rarely bite are well known for their ability to climb trees after a bird or bat in their search for food whenever the stray rodents are scarce to be found. They are also said to be great pets, though this description is usually made in regards to those that are wanted by their owners not the unexpected visitor that happens to pop in unexpectedly. Needless to say Mrs. Olsen woke Mr. Olsen to let him know of their holiday visitor and soon after they were on the phone to The Snake Man, 80 year-old Richard Stengel, as neither of them were willing to go after the critter. The Snake Man happened to be having a bit of a coffee break right then but was soon over to capture the critter. As reported in firstcoastnews Mr. Stengel says , "I've taken them out of washers and closets, but this is the first time out of a Christmas tree. Maybe Santa will be good to me." The Olsen's are still keeping a nervous eye out for any more extra unexpected holiday visitors though, you never know when or where one may pop out.

Mrs. Olson says, "I check before I go to bed."

She looks under her bed covers before climbing in and probably will be doing so for awhile. You can check also out a video on msnbc under their weird news section of the couple and their visitor. Maybe this could lead to a new job for some brave soul, you know a Christmas tree checker.