Dog Owner Fights Python With Bare Hands To Save Puppy

A nine-week-old puppy named Jasper had a miraculous escape from a carpet python, which attempted to choke it, thanks to the timely intervention of its owner.

A video footage of the incident, which has since gone viral, shows the python heading out of a nearby bush, inside which it has been hiding, before wrapping itself around the wolfhound-cross. However, Michelle van Schouwen, from Sunshine Coast, Queensland, didn't think twice before jumping in to save her puppy with her bare hands.

On hearing the puppy squeak, van Schouwen rushed to find the python wrapped around Jasper. Though she tried hitting the reptile with a roll of Christmas paper, it wouldn't budge, forcing her to use her bare hands. She eventually managed to pull the python away, immediately tending to the wounds of the puppy. Thankfully, Jasper only sustained minor injuries. Social media users hailed the woman’s actions as courageous and heroic.

According to 3BA, a radio station that reported the news, the owner said she quickly realized she had to use bare hands. "In that first moment, we used a cardboard Christmas wrap roll to try and knock the snake off him, but it was useless and realized we would need to pull the snake off by hand," 3BA quoted the owners.

Sunshine Coast witnessed a similar incident a week ago when a 10-week-old puppy named Wally was found lying in a pool of blood. According to ABC News, Kelly Morris and her partner saw a python latching onto Wally's face, after wrapping itself around the dog's stomach. The couple quickly uncoiled the two-meter carpet python and released Wally's head from its fangs.

A crew from Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7 attended the property and relocated the snake.

In an earlier incident, two large snakes had crashed onto a man's table in Australia after falling through the ceiling in his kitchen. According to Sky News, Brisbane-native David Tait discovered the snakes after returning from work to his home.

After the crash, the Coastal Carpet Pythons, measuring 9.5ft and 8.2ft long, had slithered off to the bedroom and living room. The reptiles were later moved to a forest by snake catcher Steven Brown.

October and November are usually the peak snake season in Australia as it marks the beginning of their spring. Snakes come out of hibernation and begin to look for food and mating partners.