Snakes on a...pizza? NC family finds terrifying surprise in oven

WAKE FOREST, N.C. - A Wake Forest family was shocked after finding a slithery surprise in their oven ... a snake.

The Helms say they found the snake while baking a pizza. Amber and Robert Helm said they noticed smoke fill the kitchen before realizing it was a snake in the oven.

If you were wondering, they did not eat the pizza. Now, they are having trouble getting rid of the sight and smell of the unexpected guest.

it's a story that's gotten more than a thousand likes and shares on WRAL's Facebook page.

"I was queasy and it was creepy," said Robert Helm. "There's nothing good about finding a smokey snake in your oven."

A seared serpent wasn't on the menu for Helm and his family. A pizza was.

"The oven started smoking and I told my boys 'back up' so I can make sure a fire or anything didn't happen," said Amber Helm. "I looked closely and was like 'Oh my God! That's a friggin' snake'."

So what did the family do for dinner instead?

"We went out to eat," Amber Helm said. "We did not eat the pizza. I hear a lot of people asking the question. 'Did we eat the pizza?' No."

Crawling creatures come along with rural living, but they aren't invited in the Helm's household.

"I am sad the way the snake died," Amber Helm said.

Have they used the oven since?

"No," Robert Helm said. "It's in double-, triple-cleaning mode. I cleaned it through a cycle last night. It's soaking now. The grill grates have been pulled."

The family said they plan on bringing in animal experts to find out where the snake came from and how it ended up in their oven.