Canberrans are being warned to prepare for the snake season, after recent rain increased the amount of grass around, and a few snake bite cases start to turn up at local hospitals.
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ACT Parks and Conservation Service senior ranger Nick Daines said it was still early in the season, but calls had started coming into the service, mostly for people who mis-identified blue tongue lizards or the threatened striped legless lizard as snakes.
While ACT Health could not confirm specific numbers of snake bite cases in the past month, it is understood fewer than 10 have come to hospital.
Mr Daines said while the service would not remove snakes from public parks or backyards, they would intervene if a snake was in a house or it posed a serious safety risk to people.
"Mostly we just advise people to leave them alone if they are in the backyard or whenever, they're almost always just passing through on their way to find food or a mate, and don't pose a threat.
"But if people are concerned, we now have services in the ACT that will remove a snake for a fee, but we won't usually intervene unless it's a real risk."
Both Mr Daines and Calvary Hospital emergency consultant David Caldicott advised bushwalkers to wear long pants and covered shoes, and keep dogs on a leash particularly in long grass.
Dr Caldicott said bushwalkers should also take a pressure bandage with them, and practise using them before leaving, in case of a snake bite, as snakes might not be as cautious in rural areas compared to urban environments.
"If you're bitten, don't panic, it's almost always defensive and a snake puts a lot of metabolic effort into biting, so often it will deliver a dry bite, or a bite with no venom, first," he said.
Dr Caldicott said often people would turn up at the hospital with a snake bite that did not include "venomation", or when venom is actually injected into the bite site.
"Apply your bandages as you've practised and a good idea is to splint the limb, use a rolled-up magazine or anything really, as if the venom hasn't reached the bloodstream the bandages and splint can help the venom lurk in the subcutaneous tissue and slow the release into the blood," he said.
"But if they can, people should splint it and have someone carry them back to a car or ambulance and go straight to hospital," he said.
Dr Caldicott said people should also avoid washing the bite site or clothes, as experts at the hospital could test the area for venom to help identify the snake and better treat the wound.
Mr Daines also urged homeowners to clean up their yards – from mowing the lawn to clearing rubble or corrugated iron and ensuring pet food was stored appropriately.
"We work on the rule that anything that can attract mice will attract snakes, so it's best to be prepared," he said.