RFK Jr. Plays Snake Wrangler on Dr. Oz's Porch

When you’re the United States Health and Human Services Secretary, your weekend plans might involve a lot of things—but wrangling mating snakes barefoot on a colleague’s patio probably isn’t high on most people’s to-do list.

Yet there was Robert F. Kennedy Jr., 72, doing exactly that during Memorial Day weekend at Dr. Mehmet Oz’s home in Florida. The incident unfolded in front of his wife, Cheryl Hines, who provided the running commentary—mostly panic-stricken pleas for her husband to step back and let nature take its course.

The drama centered on a pair of black racers caught in an intimate moment on Dr. Oz’s patio. Kennedy, seemingly unfazed by the lack of footwear, went straight into action to separate the snakes. Hines wasn’t having it.“Moccasins! Those are dangerous!”she shouted, urging him to abandon the mission. Kennedy calmly corrected her: they weren’t moccasins—just black snakes. Dr. Oz chimed in with his own questions, including asking what exactly they were doing together. When Kennedy confirmed they were biting, he added,“their mouths are huge!”

For the record, black racers (also known as North American racers) are non-venomous and harmless to people and pets, though they will absolutely bite to defend themselves. They’re extremely common throughout Florida, found in every county including the Keys. The Florida Museum of Natural History describes them as long, slender snakes with large, prominent eyes—exactly the kind of surprise guests you’d expect to stumble across in a Florida backyard.

Kennedy’s impromptu wildlife management moment went viral, drawing praise from the snake-enthusiast community. Florida wildlife enthusiast and conservationist Garrett Galvin called it a“good yoink,”while internet personality Trent Parker, known as“Mr. Fat Cheeto,”invited him to join him on his boat in Lake Tuscaloosa.

This isn’t Kennedy’s first brush with headlines over animal-related behavior. A biography released in April titled RFK Jr: The Fall and Rise cited a journal entry in which Kennedy allegedly stopped his car on a New York highway in 2001 to extract the penis from a dead raccoon. Author Isabel Vincent explained that Kennedy had wanted to be a veterinarian as a kid and worked at the National Zoo in Washington, D.C., fueling what she described as a deep interest in studying animal biology.