Thread: snakes

I knew a bloke that lived near a river, and he had to go to the river bank each evening to do a job (pump or some such). He found that a Tiger Snake had made itself a permanant home right where he needed to put his boot down to climb down. Against all he believed in, he shot the snake and tossed it onto the road, where passing trucks and cars soon flattened it out. The very next night, another Tiger had made itself right to home in the exact same spot. He then decided to make a new track for himself fifty metres further up the river and away from the Tiger Snake Heaven.

Our Red Bellied Blacks are starting to enjoy the sun although it is still frosty in the mornings. One crawled over Meg's boot whilst she was mowing the grass last week - she must have disturbed it.

We love snakes and would never harm them. We have two pet pythons.

Car drivers, druggies, rapists, burglars, politicians, CEOs of large multinational companies and other general human scum plus cats and dogs present a far greater threat to humans than snakes. I would gladly knock any of these on the head long before I would hurt a snake.

Most people have lost close ones to road trauma, to the effects of industrial pollution or to criminal activity but hardly anyone knows someone who has died as the result of snake bite. Most snake bites are the result of people trying to mess around with the snakes.

I was brought up on a farm with heaps of tiger snakes, brown snakes and the occasional red bellied black. I can't name anyone who was bitten by any of them. I can however name 20 or 30 people killed by idiot car drivers. I can name two or three people I knew murdered by humans, I can name several people who have died from industrial accidents or the results of industrial pollution.

For some strange reason people illogically detest snakes and go into a mad frenzy wanting to kill snakes. It makes no sense.

Get your priorities right and if you have to kill, kill the things that are a real threat to you - not things that present virtually no threat to you.

Usually have to relocate 4 or 5 from my verandah each season, mostly
pythons or brown tree snakes. This year has been bad for mice and
plenty of snakes now on the move. Had a taipan early last week and
on Sunday as I went to go outside one of my dogs jumped in front
and took hold of a bloody big brown, took a strike for his trouble and
finished up costing me a swag at the vets, but hey he may well have
saved my life.
Sorry borer, I did take half the snake to the vet but it was beyond help.
I know several people who have been bitten and contrary to popular
belief, all were minding their own business and two didnt even know they
had been bitten unil they finished up in hospital.
chers Mick.

I was bitten by a tiger snake once.

I wasn't minding my own business though. We were kids looking for blue tongue lizards. I saw a small reptilian head and grabbed it. I then realised it wasn't a blue tongue and let it go.

I must have upset it because it bit me.

I have stepped on a few and come close to a lot since then.

I admire them from afar and wouldn't go out of my way to kill one.

Of course if anything is a direct threat to your family your would take steps to eliminate the threat whether it be a fierce dog, a snake or a pedophile. The greater the threat, the more drastic elimination method.

My earlier point was the frenzied misguided approach some people have towards snakes. Many people upon seeing a snake even if it is no direct threat to them (say out in the bush), froth at the mouth and jump up and down shouting kill kill kill - idiots with a severe mental problem I feel.

Our black cat likes to bring us a present a few times each summer. Usually it's a green tree snake and so far amazingly they have all been unharmed. I've got quite comfortable just picking them up and releasing them outside. SWMBO called me inside for another one the other day and when I cornered it in the bedroom, it seemed a bit more active than usual. I was down on my knees to get a better position to pick it up when it decided to head up the leg of my cargo pants. Damn that's never happened before I stood up pretty quick and flicked it out. I can't remember what happened next but I had it by the body in one hand and was moving my other hand to get a higher grip when it struck at me and just scraped my fingertip with a fang. Damn, THAT'S never happened before! Next thing I know, I've got control of it behind the head and look under it's belly and sure enough it's cream and pinkish spots. Oh, that's an eastern brown, one of the most deadly snakes in the world, that could have gone better I was thinking, it could have gone a lot worse. So there I am sitting bizzarly quite relaxed having an exchange with SWMBO about whereabouts I'm going to put this brown snake in my hand, she is looking learily at from outside the bedroom. In the end I let it down the bloody great deep stormwater drain that flows to a nearby creek.
That was a bloody close call, the problem was my eyes had not adjusted to the dim light inside. I've had one more green snake to deal with since then, but I'm bloody a sight more careful in my identification before I get too close.

Cheers
Michael

That was a lucky call, could have been terrible.

We have had a couple of tree snakes in the house so far, no browns yet. They would be around I think tho as we had a lot of mice this year, and still have a few hanging around. My dogs are a good warning (if they arent sleeping) The smaller one barks his head off and its a different kind of bark, and the big Rotty, comes trotting purposefully out to whereever I am and leans against me and looks worriedly back to where hes spotted the snake.

Donna

On the subject of snake bites and near misses and clearing the things away from the house etc; does anyone know the "Out Of Pocket Expenses" if one does get bitten? I have heard treatment runs into thousands of dollars.

Hi Buzza, my dogs treatment was just shy of $800, but could have
been a lot more except that I got him to the vet before paralysis
set in. I presume they use the same anti venom @ $400 a pop.

By the way, it seems a lot of people are not aware that the
eastern brown tree snake is dangerous but not regarded as deadly.


Ha Ha Ha!!!! a brownie up the strides, I can imagine the reaction,
was laying down reading one arvo, when one comes over my shoulder.
Nearly hit my head on the roof and then had to get it out from under
the bed.
cheers Mick

Originally Posted by Wood Borer

I can however name 20 or 30 people killed by idiot car drivers. I can name two or three people I knew murdered by humans, I can name several people who have died from industrial accidents or the results of industrial pollution.

Jesus H Wood Borer, I think it a safer bet hangin' around with snakes than hangin' around you!

mic-d close call.

Let's face it, there are more cars and crazies around than snakes. I rarely see snakes these days, living in a suburb, and yet when I moved here in the sixties, snakes would visit most backyards, and the biggest snake I found here was over eight feet with the head lopped off. I found him dead on the side of a road here and he was still fresh.

They are protected, and unless they are a real threat and a skirmish begins, just try to remove them to a safe place. Call a snake removalist.

Meanwhile, from the sanctity of my backyard, I listen to the "Car Hoons" acting crazy all day long. I smell the burning rubber floating through the area ay least twice a day. I just hope those school kids walking home get there without mishap.

Originally Posted by prozac

Jesus H Wood Borer, I think it a safer bet hangin' around with snakes than hangin' around you!

Just call me Lucky Star

No seriously none of these mishaps happened in my presence or were caused by me or caused by my actions.

It's that us humans present by far the highest risk to our own kind than anything else does but our flawed thinking leads us to ignore that fact so we blame and obliterate creatures that present a relatively much smaller risk.

To make the matter even worse, those creatures presenting the much smaller risk to us increase their chance of hurting us whilst we are going out of our way to kill them.

My thoughts on this matter however are in the minority and it seems that panic stricken emotion fueled by myths is the common thinking on this subject.

A couple of ours, but they live downstairs, not running wild, being decimated by snake spray!

Cheers
Kym

Nice healthy looking snakes, obviously well looked after

One of ours is in my avatar.