Snake spends weekend as uninvited guest

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RIVERSIDE, Calif., April 30 (UPI) -- A California couple said they had trouble sleeping for a couple nights when their dog chased a red racer snake into the house and the reptile went into hiding.

Mike and Tracy Mandelbaum, who live in a ranch-style house in the Moreno Valley in Riverside County, said their dog chased the 3-foot non-venomous reptile into the house Friday afternoon and they were unable to locate it until Sunday, The (Riverside, Calif.) Press-Enterprise reported Monday.

The couple said they had trouble sleeping with the snake in the house, especially after talking to their son.

"Yeah, Mr. Nature," Mike Mandelbaum said. "He tells Tracy that she's lucky it didn't crawl into bed and wrap itself around her legs to keep warm. Thanks a lot."

The Mandelbaums said they found the snake Sunday behind a computer desk and a Riverside County animal control officer soon arrived to cart the reptile away.

Authorities said the snake was released back into the wild.