‘I let out this primal scream and my husband woke up terrified’: Snake slithers into a woman’s bed and sinks fangs into her arm – as experts warn of more reptiles invading homes to escape the heat
- She was woken in the middle of the night by a bite from a python
- Janice Terrill felt a ‘prick’ on her arm as the snake sunk in its fangs
- ‘I let out this primal scream and my husband woke up terrified,’ she said
- Snake catchers say it’s the first she’s seen a snake with ‘a person in the bed’
A rogue snake has slithered into a woman’s bed and bit her on the arm in the middle of the night as animal experts warn the reptiles are increasingly invading houses to escape the summer heat.
Janice Terrill, from the central Queensland town of Grasstree Beach, south of Mackay, felt a ‘prick’ on her arm about 11.20pm.
‘I thought it was odd, so I reached to my bedside table to turn the light on and I felt what I was sure was a snake bite my thumb,’ she told Brisbane Times.
‘I let out this primal scream and my husband woke up terrified.’
The spotted python (pictured) that bit Queensland woman, Janice Terrill, after she rolled onto it in her bed
Mrs Terrill and her husband bounded out of bed to track down their unwanted guest.
‘My husband got a torch and looked under the bed and there was the snake,’ she said.
The couple called triple zero and paramedics took Mrs Terrill to hospital for a 12-hour stay for observation and routine blood tests.
The reptile was later discovered, fortunately, to be a non-venomous spotted python, about a metre long, and known in the local area as a pygmy python.
Two of the snake bites (pictured) Janice Terrell received after rolling on top of the snake in her Grasstree Beach home
Snake catcher Heather Lampe, from Sarina Snake Removal, extracted the snake from the house and released it in nearby bush.
Ms Lampe said hot weather was causing reptiles to seek shelter in cooler spots and homes were prime real estate.
‘We had extreme temperatures last week, so the snake was basically looking for somewhere to cool down … because they can’t regulate their body temperature like humans can,’ she said.
Snake catcher Stuart McKenzie told Daily Mail Australia just two days ago that the hot weather would bring out the snakes.
‘Snakes will try to find shelter if it gets too hot and if they’re entering a house then they’re looking for shelter or food,’ he said.
Mr McKenzie warned that now the breeding season was over, Australians can expect a large influx of smaller snakes attempting to shelter in their homes.
As well as looking for a respite from the heat, snakes are on the look-out for food.
‘Home owners need to watch their garages because they are nice sheltered areas with rats and mice running around,’ Mr McKenzie said.
Snake catchers are warning people to be on the lookout as visits from the reptiles are on the increase due to the hot weather
‘If they’re entering a house, they are usually looking for shelter or food – usually rats and geckos.’
To keep snakes out, he recommended keeping garages neat and tidy, making sure every door has a screen, and keeping windows and doors closed.
Mr McKenzie said if you see a snake, leave it alone and walk away.
‘Snakes aren’t aggressive, they are defensive,’ he said.
‘The only reason a snake will get angry at you is if they feel threatened.’
Snake catcher, Stuart McKenzie (pictured) says if you come across a snake, leave it alone and walk away.