WHEN a Tamworth pest inspector slithered into the roof of a local home this week, he did not expect to find this scaley surprise.
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Brock Pearson, of Pearson Pest, was performing a routine termite inspection on a local property when the customer mentioned they had been hearing noises in the roof.
“Further investigation of the roof area revealed a four-foot Eastern brown snake had found its way into the roof of the home and then became lodged in the wall cavity, unable to make its way out,” Mr Pearson said.
“Normally pest controllers don’t deal with snakes, it’s more a WIRES issue, but in this instance retrieval was fairly straight forward since the snake had already died a day or two earlier.
“It’s an unusual occurrence but it does happen.”
The discovery comes just days after a 24-year-old Tamworth man died after being bitten by a suspected brown snake.
His family rushed him to Tamworth hospital, and despite administering anti-venom and resuscitation attempts, he died within an hour.
The WIRES local branch has had about 20 call-outs to snake sightings this warm season, with Eastern browns accounting for the majority of sightings.
If anyone comes across a snake, they should stand still until it moves away, call WIRES on 1300 094 737 and, if possible, keep an eye on it.
It’s believed there have been fewer than 40 deaths from snake bites in Australia since 2000, with the brown snake considered to be one of the deadliest in the country.
AWARENESS IS KEY
The RSPCA Tamworth Volunteer Branch is also doing its bit to help raise reptile awareness.
The group has teamed up with Pets Domain to host Reptile Awareness, a display of pet snakes and other reptiles.
“We are so excited to have Reptile Awareness come into our store and offer to display their “pet” snakes and reptiles,” Pets Domain manager Chey Conlan said.
“Reptile Awareness owner Sharna first came into our store to have Santa photos taken at RSPCA Tamworth Santa Paws fundraiser and the two snakes were an absolute hit with our customers and so we came up with the idea of Snakes Alive - Face your fear, where Sharna will put the most terrified of persons at rest.
“We are raising funds and working in conjunction with RSPCA Tamworth who are focusing on the importance of desexing your pets – preventing unwanted litters.”
The display will be at Pets Domain on Bridge Street this weekend between 10am and 2pm.