Gordon_R
Honorary Master
If in doubt, ASI advertise their number. I believe it's Johan Marais personal no. My doc called him when I was bitten a few months back. Very helpful guy. My first snake book was written by him (80s).
I phoned around 7am, and it's hard to get any responses that early in Cape Town. The SPCA guy is based in Grassy Park (relatively nearby), and was very helpful. He said venomous snakes in urban areas are fairly rare, and they log callouts in a central database. He also said that cobra anti-venom is out of stock, and hospital treatment is very expensive. Edit:
Frantic hunt for snake antivenom after man is bitten by cobra in Western Cape
The minister of health, Dr Joe Phaahla, has said that SA’s snake antivenom shortage is being monitored, but snake experts battled to find any on Thursday after a man was bitten by a Cape cobra in Noordhoek in the Western Cape.
BTW, the snake was more afraid of us than we are of her (female). My role was to secure the scene so that rubbish bins could be taken out, and cleaners resume work (some people wanted to harm the snake).
Edit: As caretaker I have plumbers on speed-dial. Animal control is not usually one of my key priorities...
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