SNAKES ALIVE

Chris Daly found his first snake when he was a young boy and has been handling them ever since. “When I was about 13 I gave the local pet shop my name and number for anyone who came in with snake-related problems,” the Reptile Rescue Incorporated owner recalls.

His passion for reptiles has taken him all over the world, including a recent trip to Indonesia to handle king cobras and Komodo dragons. Locally he spends his days relocating snakes that find their way into suburban homes and yards, while also educating Tasmanians about the “wonderful, misunderstood creatures’’.

However Daly’s reptile friends haven’t always played nice. “Back in 2011 I got bitten by a tiger snake when I was on a call out,” he says. “It bit the top of my right thumb with its fang. After years of teaching people how to deal with snake bites, I had to put it into practice.”

Reptile Rescue Incorporated holds snake handling courses a couple of times a year, with the next session in Launceston, on February 11, with more to be held in Hobart later this month and early next month.

Each one-day course costs $120 per person, and teaches all aspects of venomous snake handling including species identification and snake bite first aid.

Daly says the courses are not just for people who want to be rangers or handlers.

He says the courses are popular with people who regularly get snakes on their properties and want to be able to safely remove the reptiles. Others simply want to learn more about snakes or want help overcoming their fears.

For more info visit reptilerescue.org.au or call 0499 116 690.