Voice contestant has pet snake removed

The Voice contestant Anja Nissen will have her prized pet corn snake Zena removed from her care after she appeared on A Current Affair with the reptile and wildlife experts dobbed her in to authorities.

The singer, from the NSW Blue Mountains, was profiled on the show following her successful audition on the The Voice.

During the segment, Ms Nissen proudly showed off her pet snake which she had been keeping for six years in a specially fitted out tank.

But after the show went to air, viewers got in touch with the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service to inform them that the snake was being kept illegally.

"After the show the department was forwarded information suggesting the snake is illegal," a NPWS spokesperson told News Corp.

"I got Zena when I was 12 years old as a gift and, until now, have been unaware that it is potentially illegal," Ms Nissen said.

"I am now in the process of formally identifying her and if need be, sadly, finding an exotic pets rescue group that will take her and look after her."

However that is unlikely to occur, with the NPWS admitting they had no other option but to euthanase Zena as the snake is a threat to the environment.

"Corn snakes are a highly invasive exotic species that pose a real risk to our own native species.

They present a serious risk of establishing in Australia as agricultural or environmental pests, carrying pathogens that are capable of spreading diseases to livestock and local wildlife," the spokesperson said.

"Well feel for her but there are a lot of legal reptiles you can keep as pets."

Source: News Corp

Author: Natasha Lee, Approving editor: Matthew Henry