A mother-of-four was given the fright of her life when she woke up to find a large snake on her bed which bit her on the breast.
49-year-old Caroline Griffin says she had no idea how the four foot snake slithered its way into her bed and if it was poisonous.
The snake sank its fangs into her breast while she slept at her home, luckily it was a harmless brown belly California kingsnake which had escaped from a neighbour’s home six months earlier.
Daily Mail reports:
The single mother of two girls and two boys said she woke up after feeling an unusual movement beneath her sheets.
Throwing back the duvet, Ms Griffin saw the large snake resting on her chest and started to scream.
The snake then bit into her breast, leaving bruising and puncture marks.
Describing the incident, Ms Griffin told the Daily Record: ‘I was about to get up to get the kids ready to go to school when I threw the duvet back and saw it sitting on my chest.’
‘I thought the kids were playing some sort of trick on me at first. Then I saw it move and I got the fright of my life.
‘As soon as I started to scream, it bit me on the breast. It was quite sore… I thought I was going to die.’
On
the loose: The snake’s owner Gareth Niven (pictured) said Hiss escaped
from his tank six months ago. He thinks Hiss is likely to have been
living in a derelict house that separates his and Ms Griffin’s
properties
Painful:
Caroline Griffin says she screamed and tried to sit up when she
realised there was an animal in her bed. At this point the snake bit
into her breast, leaving bruising and puncture marks
News spread along the street and a short time later the snake’s owner Gareth Niven, 21, arrived at her front door to collect it.
After calling Scottish SPCA to say Mr Niven had come forward, a driver for the animal charity turned his vehicle around and the job was cancelled.
Mr Niven said the snake, which he calls Hiss, had escaped from his tank six months earlier and is likely to have been living in a derelict house that separates his and Ms Griffin’s properties.
It is believed council workers who recently visited the abandoned house may have disturbed Hiss and caused him to move into Ms Griffin’s home.
Help:
As she suffered no immediate ill health as a result of the bite, Ms
Griffin asked her children to take photographs of the snake and call the
Scottish SPCA
Knowing full well that Hiss – like all kingsnakes – has no venom,
Mr Niven simply scooped him up in an empty pillowcase and took him
home.Although Hiss seems more aggressive than usual, this is probably a result of hunger and the fact he has had to fend for himself for the last six months, Mr Niven said.
Despite there being no risk to Ms Griffin as a result of the bite, kingsnakes are constrictors and the reptile may have killed her had it wrapped itself around her neck.
Worryingly its not the first time Hiss has escaped from his tank.
During a previous bid for freedom, he was on the loose in the neighbourhood for two years.
Mr Niven even admitted the reptile is nicknamed ‘Houdini’ such is his ability to push his way out the enclosure.
0 comments:
Post a Comment