Summer comes with its fair share of dangers but perhaps there’s nothing more frightening than seeing a deadly snake slithering through your backyard.
Most would think snakes are only confined to bush and rural areas but a Weekender investigation has revealed snakes are now making their way into the suburbs including many Penrith yards and homes.
Werrington County resident, Lauren Freeman, came in contact with two deadly snakes in recent weeks – a brown and a red-bellied black snake.
“We had a four-foot brown snake bite my Husky puppy, Wolf, on the tongue last week after he had it in his mouth,” Ms Freeman said.
“Fortunately we rushed him straight to the vet and his slowly making a recovery. This isn’t first time we’ve had a snake on our property. I’ve seen about 10 of them in the last three years, and a few weeks ago we had a two-metre red-bellied black in our house!”
Snakes of all species have been spotted around town of late including brown snakes in Cranebrook, Londonderry, Werrington and Glenmore Park as well as red-bellied and green snakes in Penrith and Glenmore Park.
WIRES (Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service) have recently received hundreds of calls from people concerned about snakes on their property.
According to WIRES, snakes are generally shy, reclusive animals and will avoid confrontation with humans at all costs, preferring to flee given the opportunity.
WIRES will only respond to calls if a snake is injured or posing an immediate risk to human safety.
WIRES recommends homeowners take careful steps to safely and humanely encourage snakes found on a property to relocate elsewhere.
If you see a snake on your property and you are not sure what to do with it give WIRES a call on 1300 094 737.
