Family Finds 25 Snakes in Their Dream Home, Then Learns It Was Once Called ‘The Snake House’

A Kentucky family thought they had found the perfect home. Just weeks after moving in, however, they began finding snakes. What started with a few unwanted visitors soon became a problem that would cost thousands of dollars.

Jessica and Johnathan Perry bought their home in Salvisa, Kentucky, in August. Jessica had fallen in love with the house after spotting it on Zillow. With a young son to raise, the couple looked forward to making the property their own.

Then came the snakes. Within months, the family had found at least 25 of them, including adults and young snakes in the basement. Workers later uncovered what appeared to be an old nesting area beneath the front porch.

As the couple searched for answers, they learned something even more troubling. According to Jessica, a former owner remembered the property having a nickname years earlier: “the snake house.”

An Unwelcome Surprise

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Speaking with LEX 18, Jessica described how quickly she fell for the property. She called it her “cottage-core dream house,” and the couple made an offer the same day they toured it.

They closed on August 5. For the first few weeks, everything seemed fine, but the trouble began when Jessica spotted a snake outside while taking out the trash.

Soon, more appeared. During the first week of sightings, Johnathan and a friend went into the basement and discovered two adult snakes and several young ones.

The family identified them as rat snakes, which are not venomous. Still, finding so many inside their home left the couple worried about their 5-year-old son.

As the discoveries continued, Jessica began asking neighbors about the property. One former resident reportedly remembered finding snakes in the basement as a child.

Jessica also spoke with a former owner who told her that the property had once been called “the snake house.” She says the snake problem had not been disclosed before the purchase.

Something Beneath the Porch

Determined to find the source, the Perrys hired an exterminator to place traps around the property and inside the basement. When that failed to solve the problem, they brought in a contractor.

Workers tore into the front porch and found shed snake skins leading toward the foundation. Beneath the concrete, they discovered numerous snake eggs.

“We found snake skin sheds going into the foundation of it,” Jessica told LEX 18. “He busted out the middle and then found multiple, multiple snake eggs that had made a den for what looked like several years.”

The discovery raised fears that snakes had been using the area long before the family arrived. After workers cleared it out and sealed openings around the home, the Perrys hoped the worst was over.

But the snakes kept appearing. Jessica said she recently discovered another rat snake measuring about six feet long in the basement.

A Growing Expense

The family has already spent a couple thousand dollars trying to address the problem. Now they face more work on the basement, with one contractor estimating repairs at $4,000 to $5,000.

The couple also worries that additional snake dens could be hidden elsewhere around the foundation. They have cleared brush near the property and plan to investigate the back porch as part of their continued efforts.

Meanwhile, checking the basement for snakes has become a regular chore.

A friend started a GoFundMe campaign to help cover the repairs and removal costs.

Despite the setbacks, Jessica says the family does not want to give up on the home. They still love their neighbors and the community.

“We want to raise our son here, and this is a good community,” she told LEX 18. “We love our neighbors, and we’re just hoping that we can get it under control.”