Monitor The
Lic No. BLD248323, PGE247952
Specialising in Residential Additions, Renovations and Building Maintenance Carpentry | Plumbing | Trade Labour Hire Plastering | Electrical & Communications
Your Community Newspaper ~ Roxby Downs
www.themonitor.com.au
Phone (08) 8671 2683
Fax (08) 8671 2843
Call 0499 289 004
Email info@olympicon.com.au | PO Box 1012, Roxby Downs SA 5725
Volume 9, Wednesday, December 12, 2012
A King Brown Snake. INSET: Brody was best friends with Gatto and played with him all the time.
Local family loses dog to snake bite S
By Vanessa Switala
nake season is here and one unfortunate local family has already lost their family dog ‘Gatto’ to a snake bite. A five-year-old, Border Collie Cross, Gatto was bitten by a King Brown Snake in the back yard of the family home which backs onto sand dunes. Owner Leah Spencer said she could hear Gatto barking in the yard and she saw the snake under the clothes line so brought her two dogs inside. Ms Spencer said she rang the BHP Billiton Main Gate and they told her they would attempt to find a volunteer snake catcher but no one was available to come to her property.
The snake had disappeared so Ms Spencer let her dogs back out into the yard, as she thought the snake had returned to the dunes at the rear of her property. A short while later the snake was back. Ms Spencer brought her dogs back inside the house but it was too late. Her partner and a resident at the house next door killed the snake, but Gatto started to have trouble breathing. By the time Ms Spencer took Gatto to the veterinary surgery and the snake bite was located on the back of Getto’s neck, he was paralysed. “If I knew salivating was a sign of being bitten by a snake I could have got him to the vet sooner,” Ms Spencer said. She said the vet could have provid-
ed Gatto with anti-venom but at an extremely high price, and he was already paralysed so the family decided to put him down. Ms Spencer is thankful neither of her young sons was outside as they often played with Gatto. “I’m lucky Brody wasn’t outside,” she stressed. “There should be someone in town who can deal with snakes.” Arid Recovery’s Education and Community Officer, Hannah Spronk said, “I think the first step is people understanding snakes are part of where we live and we are more than likely going to come into contact with them at some stage. They were here long before we moved in and took over this small part of the desert.” Ms Spronk stated, “They give most
of us a fright h because b we aren’t ’ expecting them, and most of the snakes we will encounter in this area are dangerous. It is mostly common sense when people find a snake in their yard.” Ms Spronk suggested trying not to panic if a snake is encountered. “You are much bigger and scarier to the snake who is only at ground level,” she said. Ms Spronk said to remove children and pets from the area and keep an eye on the movements of the snake. “Most of the time the snake will leave the same way it entered your yard.” “Removing thick leaf litter and piles of rubbish, ensuring that all building materials etc. are stored up off the ground, keeping your lawns short and
shrubs h b away ffrom the h h house and d removing water sources are a couple of simple tips to deter snakes from your yard,” Ms Spronk suggested. “Arid Recovery are interested in critters big and small that we find in our local environment, and will try to help with identifying them or rescuing if we have trained staff available.” Roxby Council stated the newly re-formed Environment Forum has flagged snake awareness within the community as an issue it wishes to tackle. They hope to work towards making the community more aware about the dangers and environmental concerns with regard to snake management, while potentially lobbying for alternative arrangements in snake management within our community.
s a m t s i r h C y r r Me ROXBY CENTRAL
would like to wish you a very
And thank you for your support in 2012!