?
Posted on 01/07/2013 10:06:28 PM PST by nickcarraway
An Australian toddler had a lucky escape after being attacked by a python which wrapped itself around the sleeping child's arm and then began constricting and biting the infant.
Snake handler Tex Tillis said the two-year-old girl's mother woke at 3:00 am on Saturday to find the 1.85 metre (six foot) reptile attached to her child as they lay in bed in Lismore, about 600 kilometres (370 miles) north of Sydney.
"She saw three coils of what looked like a snake around her baby's arm. She naturally freaked, but with presence of mind... she went for what she thought was the snake's head," Tillis told AFP on Monday.
(Excerpt) Read more at emirates247.com ...
It's a snake. She had a 50/50 chance.
Hint to moms: It's not the pointy end.
/johnny
?
Will this house pet come when you call?
How nice to see this incident didn't provoke irrational ophidiophobia!
I assume, from the information in the article, that it was a snake which came in from outdoors, rather than a family pet. Fond as I am of snakes, I think I'd be unpleasantly startled at finding one in bed with me!
Oz is home to an amazing assortment of pythons, none of which are venomous and most of which pose no threat to humans.
I would hazard a guess that the sudden movement caused the snake to fear-strike.
I too am glad they didn’t over-react.
[but Aussies are made of stern stuff so I’m not surprised]
Oz is also home to some of the deadliest vipers on earth so in comparison, this was probably not that big of a deal to all involved.
I have several wild snakes who come inside this old house from time to time.
My favorites are the fleeting-but-lovely Milk Snake and the over-friendly sub-adult Black Rat Snake.
It slithers around my ankles before coming to rest on the tops of my feet.
Old log houses are notorious for mice in the walls so I treat them as welcome, useful guests.
:)
I don’t worry about them getting in bed with me near as much as I do about the dogs getting hold of them.
My dogs are fine with my pet snakes but I’m not sure if they’d rationalize that the wild snakes were somehow part of ‘my world’, too.
Eva Marie Snake [Possible Super/Hypo Jungle BCI]
Veronica [Kahl Albino]
Ruby [Colombian BCI, currently dark due to impending shed]
Pretty!
A lady who was buying fish while I was getting crickets at Petsmart on Saturday said that a black rat snake had eaten her peacock chicks. I had to sympathize with her decision to kill the snake, as expensive as she said those chicks were!
I hope she gets some 1/2” x 1/2” hardware cloth for the next coop she builds.
If a snake can get its head through a hole, the rest of it will fit and there’s bound to be more snakes around.
You can’t go killing them all.
The neighbor raised a whole bunch of quail chicks for my dad and was surprised when coons bit their feet off from below and hawks dragged them out from the sides because he used 1” x 3” wire.
He griped to me about them and all I could think was “duh”.
Before I clicked on this, I just knew it had to be Australia. Just knew it...
I could veritably hear, “The reticulated python et me baby,” in a rich Aussie dialect.
Maybe there should be an Aussie top 10 “Things that ate my baby:”
Huntsman spider
Reticulated Python
Foldaway Futon
Salt Water Crocodile
Dorothy Gale’s house (Oh wait, that’s for the top 10 list of Ozzie “Things that ate my baby” List.)
Box Jellyfish
Rabid ‘roo
Sting ray
Milky mangrove plant
Dingo
I will thank-you kindly to never invite me into your house!
Why not?
There’s always plenty of free hugs to go ‘round.
:)
LOL
The resemblance is unmistakeable.
Crikey!
:-)
I thought so...especially the eyes.
:)
Before
After
Is that trippy or what?....;D
Wow, that really changed the color!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.