A woman in southern Ontario made a late-night call to police to corral a potentially dangerous intruder -- a 20-centimetre scorpion that had made its way into her bedroom.
Police in Owen Sound said the venomous critter had escaped from another resident's home Tuesday, a day before it appeared in the woman's apartment.
The neighbour had "rescued" the scorpion from another friend on Saturday, believing it was being mistreated, police said.
Staff Sgt. Mike Daze said officers used a shovel to "scoop it up" into a plastic container.
Local bylaws forbid keeping scorpions as pets so the creature will be turned over to animal control, which will determine whether to send it to a zoo or other facility, he said.
The scorpion has its stinger but Daze said it's unclear how much venom it had left.
"By nature, like any of those types of animals, whether it's a snake or a scorpion, is there potential for someone to be hurt? Sure there is," he said.
"The degree of that in this particular animal, I don't know."
The woman and another resident were heading off to bed when they saw what they thought was a "black insect of some sort" on their bedroom floor, Daze said.
On closer inspection, they realized it was a scorpion and cornered it until police arrived, he said.
"They were scared, I think they were taken aback, and they did the right thing," the staff sergeant said.
"It's what nightmares are made of, isn't it?"
Last month, a woman in Brockville, Ont., called police after waking up to the sight of a large snake in her bedroom.
The snake slithered away before officers arrived but was captured shortly afterward. Local media said it belonged to another tenant who had lost track of the pet months ago.
