Frightening moment deadly brown snake bites a man trying to catch the reptile in a suburban backyard – resulting in him being rushed to hospital
- Snake catcher bitten by deadly reptile in suburban backyard
- Brown snake put man in hospital after biting his index finger
- Mark Pelley says there are more snakes around than ever
A snake catcher has ended up in hospital after being bitten by an deadly eastern brown while trying to remove the creature from a suburban backyard.
Mark Pelley, who labels himself the Snake Hunter, was chasing the serpent at a house in the outer northern Melbourne suburb of Doreen about 6.45pm on Monday, when it made a surprise attack.
‘There was an eastern brown snake near the spa,’ Mr Pelley told Seven News.
‘I tried to catch the snake, it went away from me and just when I went to pick it up it lunged up and bit me right on the tip of my index finger.’
Snake catcher Mark Pelley was bitten by eastern brown that he was trying to capture on Boxing Day in Melbourne’s outer north
Mr Pelley said it’s the first time he has been bitten despite being a professional snake wrangler for years and catching the reptiles even as a child.
According to his daughter Aishah, Mr Pelley was ‘exhausted after multiple days catching with minimal sleep’.
She said the snake had made a mock strike but had then ‘launched itself to the left’.
‘Dad’s hand was reaching down at the same time and the fangs grazed his left index finger on the tips,’ she wrote on the Snake Hunter Facebook Page.
‘He carried on with the job and caught the feisty snake to put it away safely.’
Mr Pelley bandaged the finger and kept his arm immobile.
Although the snake’s fang only grazed his index finger Mr Pelley spent a night in hospital to ensure he was OK
However, after ringing triple-0 he drove the ‘three minute’ journey back to his house one-handed.
‘Once he arrived home I just made sure he stayed lying down,’ Aishah said.
‘I monitored his vitals.’
An ambulance arrived and rushed him to Austin hospital where he stayed overnight.
‘It was very stressful because I wasn’t sure if it had envenomated him or not,’ Aishah said.
‘The eastern brown is the second most dangerous snake in the world.’
After a barrage of blood tests Mr Pelley was given the all-clear to leave hospital at 7am and he went out to catch several snakes that day.
Mr Pelley, who calls himself the Snake Hunter, says there are more reptiles out and about than he have ever experienced before
Best practice when bitten by a snake is not to move and wait for emergency services, but Aishah defended Mr Pelley driving home by saying that she had the knowledge and equipment to monitor and resuscitate him if need be.
Mr Pelley said the demand for his services has been constant this summer.
‘The snake season is actually busier than ever before,’ he said.
‘Once upon a time I would get five snakes a day and not I am getting anywhere between 10 to 20 snakes a day.’
He called on councils to keep parkland grass mown short because if snakes get comfortable in long grass when it is eventually cut they may look to get into homes.
