Cat saved family from deadly snake following four day ordeal

A mother from Brisbane, Australia, has described how her family finally managed to corner a deadly snake by trapping it in a toy oven. Christy Thomas from Joyner in Brisbane's north said they first saw the venomous Eastern Brown snake almost two weeks ago, but it took four days to find it again and catch it. Ms Thomas said she hardly slept for four nights, terrified about where the snake was.



Snake catcher David Farrimond couldn't find the reptile during two visits to the home, despite searching for hours. "The snake catcher tore the place apart looking for the snake, which was fine with me," Ms Thomas said. The family cat came to the rescue, spotting the snake inside a child's toy oven, four days after it first appeared. Ms Thomas held a crutch against the oven door to keep the reptile inside while she waited for David to arrive.



"I knew I had to just stay there until he got here, it was awful," Ms Thomas said. Mr Farrimond said he had to entice the snake to launch itself at him so he could get it out of the mini oven. "It was very aggressive snake, very hard to catch," he said. "That's why I wear them a bit loose so they can get a mouth full of the glove instead of you," Mr Farrimond said. He released the snake away from homes, near a creek in the next suburb.


YouTube link.

The Eastern Brown Snake is the second deadliest in the world, and they're attracted to suburban areas where they find mince mice and lizards. David Farrimond says they kill more people Australia wide than just about all other species put together. He says if anyone comes across one of these snakes they should not try to kill it, but keep an eye on it and call a professional for help. Ms Thomas is just pleased it's over and none of her children were hurt.