Interesting News Article

[snake catcher]

Snakes Bite Dogs

Snakes are becoming more active as the weather heats up and recent mice plagues mean there are more snakes around.

Lance Pittaway, a mustering contractor from Broken Hill, breeds kelpies which sell anywhere between $500-$6000 each.

He recently lost a kelpie and a pet poodle to fatal snake bites but over the years he says he has lost quite a few.

The common brown and the king brown snakes are the main culprits.

"Yeah they are a problem," he said.

"When you have bitches with pups the snakes love milk and it attracts them."

But householders now have a new weapon to fight snakes.

"In the front yard we have solar powered snake deters which send a vibration along the ground," he said.

"The snakes think it's a predator and move off."

Mr Pittaway has also adjusted his kennels to avoid snake encounters.

"The kennels are built about four foot off the ground with mesh floors," he said.

"I'm trying to keep the snakes at bay."

The demand for well-bred working dogs is growing as pastoralists run more sheep with the good prices at the moment.

Mr Pittaway says losing dogs to snake bites is both emotionally and financially draining.

"For me, being a contract musterer, they're my livelihood," he said.

"It's hard to put a value on them.

ok, so Ive highlighted some of the crazier points.

Snakes are not attracted to milk,,,this is a myth

The jury is out on the Solar snake scarers,

don't run around in bare feet in the grass

just because you use the Solar doodads.

Pleas look at the picture of his elevated dog kennels with nesh bottoms..

Food and feaces drops through, the mice love it and the snakes can

live under the old pieces of tin all year round eating mice.

Is this a normal kennel for dogs being bred and fetching 1000s of dollars?

[Inevitablue]

Yep, many farmers keep their working dogs like that, raised off the ground on mesh.

[snake catcher]

So the old bugger just needs to get rid of the corrugated iron and

mice and he'd be on his way getting ontop of the snakes.

Love the old wivestales like ,the milk snake and the hoop snake ect.

When I get called out to remove snakes i like listening to old guys and girls

who have been on the land for

generations, all the weird stories ect.

[Nekhbet]

it's true remove the food and the shelter the snakes will move on. It's the same when people ask us to come clear out the rabbit problem they have, we see piles of rubbish everywhere, timber lying down, overgrown boundaries and plants etc I'm not risking my ferret in garbage. Remove the ability to hide and availability of homes that predators cannot access and most of the rabbits will not survive or move on. A little effort goes a long way for pest control.

[snake catcher]

So true Julie, I always say, If the snake has nowhere to hide it will move on.

They dont like open spaces where they can be seen by a dog or bird of prey.

[Nekhbet]

what do you think of the creation of a snake friendly 'habitat' further away from the habitable area? Especially people who have larger properties, putting felled trees, letting bush grow a little in a strip to give the snakes an alternative habitat to gravitate to, as well as clearing up around where you/dogs live?

[snake catcher]

Of course im all for it Julie.

Bushy corridoors are so important for all animals and snakes will feel safe there.

Any sort of rewilding, habitat regeneration and conservation is needed

imo.

It is a great idea if you are worried about snakes as you are giving them

a comfortable home while at the same time making your imediate surroundings

less friendly to snakes by getting rid of bushy plants and other debri or hiding places..

With the proper maintenance up close to the house you can feel safer in your home.