Posted on 12/31/2006 1:22:47 PM PST by george76
A 14-foot python bit its handler and tried to drag her into its cage during a show at an aquarium, and wouldn't release the woman until a police officer zapped the reptile with a stun gun.
Alison Cobianchi, 18, was taking Chloe, a Burmese python, out of her cage for the daily snake presentation Saturday at the Tarpon Springs Aquarium when the snake wrapped itself around her arm and waist.
Visitors and aquarium employees kept the nonvenomous snake from pulling Cobianchi into the cage, but couldn't make it release its grip.
Police were called to help. "We either had to Taser it or we would have had to kill it," police Sgt. Allen MacKenzie said.
Cobianchi suffered puncture wounds on her wrist.
"It was definitely the most scary and painful thing that has ever happened to me," she said. "I knew I wasn't going to die, but I was worried I wouldn't get my hand back."
The snake was not seriously hurt by the stun gun.
Aquarium owner Scott Conger said Chloe bit him once while he was feeding her, but Cobianchi is the first employee seriously injured. He said the snake show was canceled indefinitely.
"She was my favorite animal that we had," Cobianchi said of Chloe. "Not anymore."
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is investigating.
We'd have more snake handlers but Kentucky made it a misdemeanor to use a reptile in a religious service ( no joke ).
;-)
Good handlers have many other means of resolving problems. Most handlers keep a spray bottle of alcohol handy. Snakes don't like alcohol, and spraying or even pouring the alcohol in the snake's mouth will usually make it release the bite and try to slither away. Warm water sometimes has the same effect.
Dog bites require people to receive medical treatment about 800,000 times a year. As a result, a dog biting someone this severely isn't news. About 20 people are killed by dogs every year. Fatal attacks by non-venomous snakes have happened maybe 10 times over the past twenty or thirty years. Their bites rarely require more than a little Neosporin and a bandage. However, these few events seem to make big news.
I suspect the reason that snake attacks are receiving so much attention these days is that the nanny-state is looking for another chance to pass regulations and bans. In addition, the animal-rights extremists see reptiles as a soft target in their efforts to eliminate all pet ownership. Between them, the strategy is to publicize every incident involving any snake, particularly the big ones. They'll build the hysteria and then write laws that paint all snakes with a broad brush. That way, they can ban the snakes that are incapable of hurting someone when they ban the ones that can hurt people. They are relying on people's ignorance to support these new laws. They are also relying on the fact that we've gone from being a society where a huge justification was needed to impose on someone's freedom to being a society where the burden of justification is on the person who may be losing a freedom.
Bill
Typically, Burmese Pythons are not nasty. They are generally very docile snakes. They typically reach lengths of about 20 feet. There's nothing wrong with letting kids pet them. I wouldn't let a kid handle one alone, but generally, no one should handle a heavy-bodied snake alone once that snake has passed about six or seven feet in length. Just as a dog can react aggressively to a situation and inflict a bad bite or even kill someone, snakes will react if they are presented with the wrong stimulus.
Bill
That's how I felt after Thanksgiving dinner.
Leni
The study of snakes and reptiles is herpetology, and there are degree programs in herpetology as a part of a biology degree. Typically, these folks don't "handle" the snakes for show as part of their work.
You're right that most folks who keep snakes as pets and work with them do not have and do not need formal education in reptiles. The basics of reptile husbandry can be found across the web and in books. Snakes' needs are pretty basic, and with a little effort, anyone can meet those needs. Most snakes are gentle and beautiful animals that enjoy a moderate amount of handling.
Bill
Bill
That's sad. While I don't agree with the theological basis of snake-handling as a sign of Christian faith, I see no point in outlawing the practice. In truth, snake-handling is just another form of religious theater. Churches have all kinds of gimmicks to get people to come, and I see no point in banning that one.
Bill
You had Alligator for Thanksgiving?
I wonder if the handler had just fed another reptile. The snake might have smelled food, and instinct kicked in. Monitor lizards have a tendancy to do that as well. My bf has gotten bit a couple of times. Ouch!
14 feet long? Bet that snake eats bunny rabbits...
i SURE AGREE with keeping them away from kids--and homes with kids in them! Sheesh. Idiots.
WC fake Indian; fake scholarship; fake art; fake American; fake human.
14 feet long...it might even try to eat a 6 foot gator
In a home with children, snakes are still safer pets than dogs are. In either case, the secret is caring for the animal properly, but even with proper husbandry, the dog is more likely to react in a way that will hurt the kid.
I decided against boas, burmese, and retics because of their size. One general rule is to have one handler for every six feet of heavy-bodied snake. Many people who keep retics and burms will handle even the big ones with only two people. In any case, no one who is working alone should handle anything bigger than ten feet.
I've always heard that Burmese Pythons are docile at any size. They are just so strong that any mistake is hard to correct for someone working alone. Reticulated pythons are known for being more aggressive, but I know many people who have them who have never seen any signs of aggressiveness. They tend to have a strong feeding response, but keepers have to expercise care in feeding any large snake.
Bill
...the young woman handler at the Reptile Show brought out a turtle.... & another small something or other.... rather lame (can't remember)....
..then she disappeared behind the wall to get the python.
She was gone for a bit and suddenly two burly men went behind the wall ....
..finally she reappeared with the thing wrapped around her.
Don't know if she needed help....
..but the show was lame.....and she talked too fast.
The place was crowded and a zillion kids wanted to touch the python.
I would say similar things about certain breeds of dogs.
Kids are toooooooooooooo precious to take unnecessary risks with.
Burmese pythons can be a bit...uh...nippy; more so than other large snakes. I was bitten in the face by a medium sized one several years ago at work. I suppose I looked tastier than the rats I was offering!
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