Durban vet urges dog owners not to let animals attack snakes
A Durban-based veterinarian has discouraged pet owners from allowing their animals to attack wildlife, especially snakes.
Dr Carla Goede says more than 80 dog-snake bites have been reported in Durban alone in the past year.
She says snakes are not out to attack pets or their owners.
"It is always tragic when a snake kills a pet. It's not the pet's fault that it gets bitten by the snake, and they have a natural instinct to protect their owners and themselves from snakes, and so they will attack them.
"But what is really sad was that we see increasingly how pet owners are instead of taking the animals away from the snake, the moment they see the interaction, they delay by either taking videos or photos or phoning around for help instead of immediately taking the pet away.
"So we always advise people to take a pet away from a snake before you do anything else."
Dr Goede has advised pet owners who have yards to keep them clean and rubble-free to avoid attracting a slithery visitor.
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In the event of a snake bite, she has some advice.
" There's no first aid for snake bites. Don't fall for myths like cutting the snake bite or sucking the snake bite to try and get venom out. Do not tie a tight bandage or anything like that around the limb. Those things just make matters worse."
Goede says snake bites in pets are treated in the same way as in humans.
" There are no home remedies. There are no first aid medications that you can give. It's the same anti-venom that is used for humans. They will be hospitalized.
"They will most likely stay a night or two, or maybe even more in hospital, depending on the severity of the snake bite. They will definitely receive pain medication and anti-inflammatory medication to help with any pain and swelling associated with the bite."
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