Dec2011_Old Mill Vet on WELCOMING SUMMER
With summer coming up fast, many of our local reptiles are starting to become more active and on the move. Unfortunately this means that our curious and frisky pets will also find any snakes hanging around your property an irresistible novelty play thing. The most dangerous time for pets interacting with snakes is the beginning and end of the warmer months. As snakes are more sluggish during these times they are less alert and less able to get away from playful pets.
Their only defence is a bite, which (if the snake is venomous) can have disastrous consequences.
Their only defence is a bite, which (if the snake is venomous) can have disastrous consequences.
The most common snakes in the greater Dayboro/Samford valley region are:
Carpet Python – completely harmless. Best rat control. Completely free of charge.
Green tree snake – completely harmless – ranges in colour from slate grey to brown to bright green. Relatively thin snake up to 1.5m long.
Yellow faced whip snake – mildly venomous – small, relatively thin snake – slate grey / olive green with copper sheen and yellow ring around eyes – very quick – likes to hide in rock walls / crevices in gardens – mildly venomous – can cause problems in small dogs and cats – (especially Foxies and Jack Russells) – if they are bitten multiple times signs can mimic a tick bite to signs including shivering, frothing at the mouth and partial paralysis.
Eastern Brown – Large brown snake up to 2.5m – These snakes will never seek out human or animal company, nor do they ever “stalk” or “hunt down” animals other than their usual prey. If disturbed however, i.e; get bitten, hit on a head with a shovel , suddenly uncovered or played with by a dog or cat, they will respond aggressively and will bite. If you are walking through the bush or gardening and making noise, more often than not, the snake has detected that you are there long before you know the snake is there and the snake is usually long gone. After all, they view us as dangerous predators! Eastern brown snake bites are potentially lethal and are definitely a medical / veterinary emergency. Signs can include seizuring or paralysis, vomiting, bleeding from the mouth or nose or simply collapse.
Red Bellied Black Snake – Shiny and black up to 3 m long with a definite red belly, these are perhaps the most recognisable of the local snakes. Their prey of choice is frogs, skinks and small mammals. They are actually quite shy and often will deliver “fake” or warning bites (i.e. won’t deliver venom) initially. If they are continually attacked i.e. a dog constantly shaking the snake, or …again someone trying to kill the snake, these warning bites can become real bites if pushed. Clinical signs can include collapse, difficulty breathing and random bleeding from the nose / mouth, anus etc. Bites from these snakes are also definite medical emergencies.
Rough Scaled Snake – Whilst these are not one of the most common snakes in the area, they are definitely here and live along creek banks and gullies. They are brown snakes with “keeled or ridged” scales with darker brown to black blotches / bands along the body. They typically grow up to 1m long. These are also venomous. Signs of envenomation can include collapse, difficulty breathing and also random bleeding from the nose, mouth or anus. These snakes look almost identical to, and share the same habitat with, a totally harmless snake called the keel back snake.
Very experienced herpetologists can tell the difference between them visually but otherwise the only definite difference between the 2 is that Keel backs have an extra scale called the loreal scale between their nasal scale and ocular scale. These 2 scales touch in a Rough scaled.
I ONLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU EVER GET THIS CLOSE OR TRY THIS AT ALL IF THE SNAKE IS ALREADY DEFINITELY DEAD!!!
The point I am trying to make, is that not all brown snakes are “Brown snakes”. The majority of brown coloured snakes in this area are actually harmless or very mildly venomous snakes.
My second point is that the vast majority of people that are bitten by snakes were in the process of killing them. If you leave them alone, they will leave you alone.
If you see a snake on your property, lock up your pets in a secure area and leave it alone. They will usually leave. If not call a snake catcher or the museum and have it properly identified by a professional. Photos and video are great for this….from a distance. If you want help with the identification or advice on snake removal options, feel free to call us at the Old Mill Veterinary Surgery and we can direct you to the relevant services available.
If your pet is bitten by a snake always take your pet to your local veterinarian immediately. Take a photo or video of the snake (from a safe distance). If it is dead, bring it with you. If you know that a snake bite has occurred but the snake has left, there are venom detection kits that can be used to identify the most likely snake involved to best direct the antivenom we should use.
The best thing that we can do to increase the safety of our pets from snakes in summer is to keep your house yard clear of wood and rubbish piles. Keep animal feed in sealed containers in sheds and keep shed floors clean of spilled food to avoid rat populations increasing which could encourage snakes closer to your house. Keep your house yard slashed.
Keep pets in your house yard and always locked up at night.
Try and maintain areas of bushland on your properly away from your house to encourage the snakes to live somewhere away from your house. Whether we like it or not, snakes will always be a part of our environment in Australia. If we choose to live in a rural area near beautiful bushland, they are going to be something that we will have to learn to live with. Their numbers are not increasing (contrary to recent inflammatory media beat-up); they are just more obvious in summer.
With excessive clearing of their habitat, some snakes become forced to live closer to people than they would usually choose as they have nowhere else to go and the vermin that we encourage near our houses can attract them if they don’t have natural bush with their usual food sources available.
There are many simple and cost free measures that we can take to increase the safety of your pets and family from snakes but also learn to live alongside them.
Carpet Python – completely harmless. Best rat control. Completely free of charge.
Green tree snake – completely harmless – ranges in colour from slate grey to brown to bright green. Relatively thin snake up to 1.5m long.
Yellow faced whip snake – mildly venomous – small, relatively thin snake – slate grey / olive green with copper sheen and yellow ring around eyes – very quick – likes to hide in rock walls / crevices in gardens – mildly venomous – can cause problems in small dogs and cats – (especially Foxies and Jack Russells) – if they are bitten multiple times signs can mimic a tick bite to signs including shivering, frothing at the mouth and partial paralysis.
Eastern Brown – Large brown snake up to 2.5m – These snakes will never seek out human or animal company, nor do they ever “stalk” or “hunt down” animals other than their usual prey. If disturbed however, i.e; get bitten, hit on a head with a shovel , suddenly uncovered or played with by a dog or cat, they will respond aggressively and will bite. If you are walking through the bush or gardening and making noise, more often than not, the snake has detected that you are there long before you know the snake is there and the snake is usually long gone. After all, they view us as dangerous predators! Eastern brown snake bites are potentially lethal and are definitely a medical / veterinary emergency. Signs can include seizuring or paralysis, vomiting, bleeding from the mouth or nose or simply collapse.
Red Bellied Black Snake – Shiny and black up to 3 m long with a definite red belly, these are perhaps the most recognisable of the local snakes. Their prey of choice is frogs, skinks and small mammals. They are actually quite shy and often will deliver “fake” or warning bites (i.e. won’t deliver venom) initially. If they are continually attacked i.e. a dog constantly shaking the snake, or …again someone trying to kill the snake, these warning bites can become real bites if pushed. Clinical signs can include collapse, difficulty breathing and random bleeding from the nose / mouth, anus etc. Bites from these snakes are also definite medical emergencies.
Rough Scaled Snake – Whilst these are not one of the most common snakes in the area, they are definitely here and live along creek banks and gullies. They are brown snakes with “keeled or ridged” scales with darker brown to black blotches / bands along the body. They typically grow up to 1m long. These are also venomous. Signs of envenomation can include collapse, difficulty breathing and also random bleeding from the nose, mouth or anus. These snakes look almost identical to, and share the same habitat with, a totally harmless snake called the keel back snake.
Very experienced herpetologists can tell the difference between them visually but otherwise the only definite difference between the 2 is that Keel backs have an extra scale called the loreal scale between their nasal scale and ocular scale. These 2 scales touch in a Rough scaled.
I ONLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU EVER GET THIS CLOSE OR TRY THIS AT ALL IF THE SNAKE IS ALREADY DEFINITELY DEAD!!!
The point I am trying to make, is that not all brown snakes are “Brown snakes”. The majority of brown coloured snakes in this area are actually harmless or very mildly venomous snakes.
My second point is that the vast majority of people that are bitten by snakes were in the process of killing them. If you leave them alone, they will leave you alone.
If you see a snake on your property, lock up your pets in a secure area and leave it alone. They will usually leave. If not call a snake catcher or the museum and have it properly identified by a professional. Photos and video are great for this….from a distance. If you want help with the identification or advice on snake removal options, feel free to call us at the Old Mill Veterinary Surgery and we can direct you to the relevant services available.
If your pet is bitten by a snake always take your pet to your local veterinarian immediately. Take a photo or video of the snake (from a safe distance). If it is dead, bring it with you. If you know that a snake bite has occurred but the snake has left, there are venom detection kits that can be used to identify the most likely snake involved to best direct the antivenom we should use.
The best thing that we can do to increase the safety of our pets from snakes in summer is to keep your house yard clear of wood and rubbish piles. Keep animal feed in sealed containers in sheds and keep shed floors clean of spilled food to avoid rat populations increasing which could encourage snakes closer to your house. Keep your house yard slashed.
Keep pets in your house yard and always locked up at night.
Try and maintain areas of bushland on your properly away from your house to encourage the snakes to live somewhere away from your house. Whether we like it or not, snakes will always be a part of our environment in Australia. If we choose to live in a rural area near beautiful bushland, they are going to be something that we will have to learn to live with. Their numbers are not increasing (contrary to recent inflammatory media beat-up); they are just more obvious in summer.
With excessive clearing of their habitat, some snakes become forced to live closer to people than they would usually choose as they have nowhere else to go and the vermin that we encourage near our houses can attract them if they don’t have natural bush with their usual food sources available.
There are many simple and cost free measures that we can take to increase the safety of your pets and family from snakes but also learn to live alongside them.
