Snakes alive indoors, too

By Paul Dunlop
SNAKES are slithering into backyards — even into people’s houses — in a bid to beat the heat and find water.
The hot, dry weather has prompted a rush of snake sightings in recent weeks, including several in residential areas alongside Pakenham’s Toomuc Creek.
Motheroftwo Tania Carr was horrified to find a large brown snake in her front yard. Ms Carr said a family just down the street had a snake in their living room only a couple of days later.
Other residents in the Lakeside at Pakenham estate have also reported seeing snakes during walks along the creek reserve.
Ms Carr said she got a huge shock when the snake slithered into her yard, just metres from where she and daughter Stephanie were sitting.
“We were sitting on the front verandah. My son Brayden had just gone to football training. I glanced over to the footpath because I had seen something shimmer and the snake slid out into the middle of the road,” Ms Carr said.
“Then it took a detour straight up my front lawn. By that stage I had my daughter inside and I went next door for help.”
Professional snake catchers have been called to a number homes in the area over the summer months.
Residents said they were concerned that grass in nearby drains and reserves between the creek and the housing estate had been allowed to grow too long.
“The grass was almost head height,” Ms Carr said, before it was cut last week.
Ms Carr said living beside a native bush reserve meant she expected to live in fairly close proximity to snakes, but never expected them to be this close.
Experts have said this summer has been particularly bad for snakes with at least two people bitten in the district in the past few months.
Raymond Hoser of Snakebusters said the best thing residents could do when they came across a snake was “nothing”.
“There have been four deaths (nationally) from snake bites this year, more than normal,” he said. “Even if you tread on the snake its first instinct is to move away. When you physically grab a snake their first instinct is to squirm and then they bite you.” Mr Hoser also warned residents that killing snakes was illegal. “A snake catcher’s job is to relocate the snake, not kill it,” he said.“We move them to a place where they won’t cause people grief.”