Durban - As snake activity starts to pick up after very little activity last month, local snake catcher Nick Evans answers the most common questions he receives from the public.
Evans said he wanted to share some information in the event that a member of the public encounters a snake.
“These are answers to the most common queries I receive, so hopefully this helps those of you who may be unsure,” he said.
While there are many more, Evans has provided the answers to 10:
1. Firstly, don't bother with repellents. None work: That includes Jeye's Fluid, commercial repellents, various plants, garlic, vanilla essence and many more. The best you can do is keep your yard clean, no piles of wood, rubble, bricks etc and hope for the best. Cutting down trees etc won't help, rather keep them, although if you have branches growing against your roof, trim them back.
2. Lock pets away, if you discover a snake first. Cats kill a lot of wildlife, including snakes. However, they usually know to leave the larger, venomous snakes. Dogs will go for any snake, and this often results in them being bitten or spat at.
If you see your dog attacking a snake, do whatever you can to get it away from the snake, apart from putting yourself at risk. If a pet is bitten by a snake, please get it to a vet ASAP.
3. Do not attempt to capture or kill the snake yourself. The snake may well be harmless, but rather confirm this with a snake catcher, by sending a photo, before picking it up. Killing snakes, especially large ones like a black mamba, can easily result in a person being bitten. The snake is terrified of you, and just wants to be left alone, with no intention or desire to bite anyone.
4. If anyone is bitten by a snake, please rush that person to the nearest hospital. Do not take the snake with you. If you can send a photo of the snake to a snake catcher for identification, great. If not, go to the hospital.
5. If you are going to phone a snake catcher, please phone when you see the snake!
This might sound obvious to you, and it should be but almost every day in summer I get calls for snakes seen hours, days, weeks or months ago. People phone me (often after hours) in a panic, or almost in tears, for snakes seen days ago. I will never understand it. I don't know any snake catcher that will rush to your assistance in such cases, unless paid a lot of money.
6. If you call a snake catcher out, please watch the snake from a distance (at least five metres). This is important, because if the snake disappears before he or she arrives, they are unlikely to find it. Contrary to what some believe, we don't have snake-detectors. Also, if you call a snake catcher out, be decent please. There's no need for rudeness.
7. Snake catchers may charge a call-out fee, or in some cases even just a small donation, to cover expenses (particularly fuel, although everything is expensive nowadays). The government does not fund snake catchers. These fees also help when one needs to go out and help those in informal settlements or rural areas for emergencies. Some people get unhappy with this, however, snake catchers need to survive somehow too. It isn't a lucrative business whatsoever, barely profitable.
8. If you're calling me and I don't answer, please listen to my voicemail for alternative numbers.
9. I'm collecting data on various topics and am always looking for reports of the following in the Greater Durban Area: snake/pet conflict, breeding behaviour, Black Mamba sightings (alive or dead), Nile Monitor Lizard sightings. Anything of interest really! You're welcome to send reports to me on 072 809 5806 or [email protected]. It would be appreciated.
10. The African Snakebite Institute app is very useful with a lot of information, as well as a snake removers list that's nationwide. Just search 'ASI Snakes' on the app store on your phone. It's free!