Dogs and Snakes
 

Hi,

I´m just looking into the possibility of working in Melbourne. I´m from a snake free country and therefore not familiar with these creatures in their wild state at all. I would like to know how safe would it be to have a pet dog if I lived in the suburbs in Melbourne?

For example if I walked in a local park, would I have to be hyper-vigilant all the time (which quite frankly wouldn´t make for a relaxing walk)? Also if he played in the garden, which had a few nice trees and plants in it, would he be likely to come across a snake one day? Finally, how do pet owners manage to walk in the bush or live out there with dogs? I fear that I´d be paranoid every time my dog steps into long grass or I drop my guard someday and he steps on one or something.

Many thanks for any insights

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

The risk would very much depend on where you are in the suburbs I suppose. But there is definitely a risk, unlike humans, 1000s of dogs are killed each year by snake bites.

My OH's family live in Eltham, in a 'bushy' area and very close to the Yarra river. They'll see snakes regularly on the property and every so often get the snake catcher out for something nasty. In that sort of area I'd assume a dog that's left in the backyard all day (which is the norm here) would be most at risk...say it was bitten early in the day and might not be treatable by the time it was discovered.

If you are out walking your dog and you are aware that it has been bitten then there's a good chance of successful treatment.

Many places where snakes are active have warning signs although I'm sure they pop up elsewhere. Summer is normally the highest risk time.

Snake bite in dogs - Dogslife. Dog Breeds Magazine

http://oz.dogs.net.au/bendigoobedien...snake_bite.pdf

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

Hmmm, scary, it would probably have me paranoid all the time. I love my dog and would die if he got bitten let alone die, I just wouldn´t want to put him at any significant risk. I´d imagine the summer time is a good few months too. Thanks for the info. Thanks to St Patrick, we´ve no biters here but unfortunately we don´t have real summers either.

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

If it helps, I lived in Australia for all my 57 years (have just moved to the UK), and have always had dogs. For some of that time I lived on the outskirts of Perth, with a lot of bush around, went camping in snake prone areas, and also collected firewood in the 'proper bush'.

The only close call with a snake was while we were camping in the sand dunes north of Perth - our dog flushed out a tiger snake from some scrub and while we'd usually have just let it slither off, it headed into our food tent and became quite stroppy, so it was off with its head (we had 3 small children running around).

Keep your gardens clear of rubbish and 'hiding spots', watch where you walk in the bush, keep to the paths in parks, don't turn over logs or let your dog run through scrub/bush alone - all common sense stuff, and you'll be ok.

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

There will be the odd exception to every rule but you can generally "tell" where you should be careful. It generally has to be quite a rural or semi-rural area, in cities this is often abutting a creek or rocky piece of coastline to be high risk for snakes. You don't really have to worry on suburban sports fields etc. Also if you are in temperate areas (don't know about the tropics) snakes are only active from about late September to April and even within that mostly on hot sunny days (although I guess that's different if your dog really goes looking for them). Incidentally the first snake I ever saw was on a coastal path in Cornwall UK...

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

An email that our safety person sent this morning:

Hi All,

Please take care when in and around the workshop or yard as we have had several snakes enter from the back door during the last few days. (Door located close to Xxxxx’s room)

The snakes have been removed but please take care when moving any objects around the workshop or yard.

If anyone has any concerns please do not hesitate to contact me.

Kind Regards

Xxxxxxx

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

Is it common to have snake training for dogs in Australia?
I live on a ranch in Texas and we get all your dogs trained every couple of years. The trainer has a live venomous snake they capture and instead of killing it they sew its mouth closed. Dogs are given shock collars to wear and allowed to 'find' the snake. As soon as the dog approaches they are shocked. The process is repeated over a couple of hours.

It dramatically lowered the instance of our dogs being bitten. We still have the occasional bite, but antivenin is available for the types of snakes we have here.

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

The left wing politically correct wouldn't allow that in Oz on many fronts.

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

Yep, and snakes are protected in some states and it is an offence to kill them unless your life is threatened.

Is it legal to kill a snake in South Australia? - ABC Adelaide - Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

"The only exception is if a venomous snake is posing a genuine threat to life and safety."
Drivers that deliberately swerve to run over snakes can also be reported and fined under the legislation.

Do you really want that snake tangled up around your axle?

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

Or ankle when on a motorbike! Not me.

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

Bloody OS&H/HR people. Arse coverers extraordinaire. Our HR Manager, Peter, was known by the 400+ workforce as Panicky Pete :lol:

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

We hated killing the tiger snake in the food tent (chopped its head off with a shovel), but it wasn't having any of our attempts to shoo it out, and it kept rearing up like a cobra. It didn't go entirely to waste though, because we cooked it (sans head). Tell you what - it didn't taste like chicken :unsure:

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

Cool! How did it taste?


S

Re: Dogs and Snakes
 

You can definitely buy/use the electro collars here, but as for sewing up a snake's mouth - that sounds fraught with issues...


S