The ball python that spent three months in the wild after wandering away from his Orrington home has passed away.

Mr. Smithers has spent his life living in an Orrington home. In July, his owner took him out of his usual enclosure and let him out to play with some kids at a barbecue. But when he started showing signs of stress, Valerie Nason placed him in his favorite flower bed. At some point after that, Mr. Smithers slithered away and got lost.

Orrington residents looked for him, but to no avail, until last week when he was discovered just two doors away at a neighbor's greenhouse. Nason told the BDN that he was in rough shape, and not eating, but she was trying to nurse him back to health.

Unfortunately, he had just been out in the cold for too long. Thursday morning, he passed away, just a few days short of his appointment with an exotic animal vet. I offer my condolences to my fellow Orrington resident for the loss of her pet. If there is any comfort in this story, it's that Mr. Smithers was surrounded by loved ones when he passed.

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