Employees at a Scarborough gas station met a different kind of customer Tuesday morning.

Slithering along a storm drain near the Esso’s front entrance was a pet python about a metre long — presumably not looking to buy anything.

According to Toronto Animal Services, firefighters retrieved the snake from outside the gas station at Danforth Ave. and Victoria Park Ave. around 1 a.m. after receiving a call from a passerby.

The snake was transported to Toronto police 55 Division before being picked up by Toronto Animal Services and taken to the city’s East Shelter.

The snake will be transferred to a reptile sanctuary, said city spokesperson Lyne Kyle, who provided a photo of the snake living in a city-subsidized terrarium.

Animal Services has since received a call from someone who claims to be the snake’s owner, Kyle said in a later interview.

Kyle said the snake, a ball python, is permitted as a pet in Toronto. According to city bylaws, snakes that reach an adult length of less than three metres are permitted as pets so long as they aren’t venomous.

“Anyone that is no longer able to care for a snake is strongly encouraged to surrender it to a local herpetological society,” Kyle said.

Contact information for individual organizations can be found by calling Toronto Animal Services at (416) 338-7297. Snakes can also be surrendered to one of the City of Toronto’s three animal shelters, which are open seven days a week from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.