AFTER a recent rescue of a black mamba in Hillary, local snake catcher, Nick Evans, urged homeowners to ensure their dogs were kept away from snakes.
While on his way to Kloof to look for the endangered Kloof Frog with a group of his friends, Nick received a call from a panicked Hillary resident who had spotted a black mamba in his front yard.
“It only took me about six minutes to get there. I arrived to find the homeowner’s daughter holding back a dog, and the homeowner pointing to his braai area,” said Evans.
Evans watched as the black mamba slithered underneath the braai area. He grabbed it with the tongs and, before he could reach down to grab it with his hands, out of the corner of his eye Evans noticed a dog running towards him.
“If you have dogs, and if you have a snake in your garden, particularly a black mamba, you have to call your dogs away and lock them up somewhere secure, away from the snake. If you do not, you’re going to end up with an expensive vet bill, or a dead dog,” said Evans.
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“By not keeping your dogs away, you put the snake rescuer’s life at risk. When working with a highly venomous snake, all your focus needs to be on the snake. You do not want to focus on the snake and shift focus to keep a dog away,” he noted.
The homeowner’s children grabbed the two dogs, allowing Nick time to pin down the snake.
“I could see something was wrong. Once I had it securely behind the head, I could look at it more closely and I was horrified. The left eye looked as if it was gone. The right eye was slightly better. I suspected retained eye caps, although the whole face looked bad,” said the snake expert.
He took the black mamba to Dangerous Creatures at uShaka Marine World the next day and the on-site veterinarians offered basic treatment and gave the black mamba a few days to rest.
If you have a snake in your home or yard, contact Nick Evans on 072 809 5806 or email nickevanskzn@gmail.com.
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