By Sheree Hoddinett
While many of us would prefer to head in the opposite direction of a snake, Chalon Lee gravitates toward them. Chalon and her trusty sidekick Judy Moore are the dynamic duo behind Rid-A-Snake, your local and super friendly snake catchers. I take my hat off to these ladies, who smile and happily chat about the feisty and sometimes slightly friendlier slithering creatures they have caught and relocated in the Bribie Island area.
What makes these two even more inspirational in the world of catching snakes (especially those of the venomous variety), is they are both originally from international shores, Chalon from the United States and Judy from New Zealand. We all know Australia has quite a lengthy list of snake species. For Chalon, it’s a dream come true.
“I’ve been fascinated with snakes my whole life,” Chalon said. “Growing up in America, from when I was a kid, I was catching snakes. But of course, most of the snakes there are non-venomous, so it’s not a big issue. Then I was in Africa and I had pythons and also caught snakes there. And then I went to Eastern Europe.
“So, wherever I've gone, I've looked at what kind of snakes they have there and tried to catch them. And then I come to Australia, it's a whole different scene. This is heaven! I love it! So many venomous ones.
“In other countries, usually there will be two or three venomous species and then something like 40 non-venomous species in snakes. And so you come here and it's flipped.”
With the weather warming up and snakes starting to move around even more, now is the time to be aware and keep an eye out. Chalon said there were about 16 snake varieties you might come across within the City of Moreton Bay area, but there was only about seven or eight you see a lot of, some non-venomous, some mildly venomous and of course, there are those which are highly venomous.
Chalon’s interest in snakes saw her head down the pathway of research, learning and eventually a course to be able to identify and catch snakes. On completion of the course, Chalon was able to approach the Department of Environment and Science and she was granted a permit to be a registered snake catcher.
“Every three months, I report back to the department about what I catch and other information relating to the snakes,” Chalon said. “Primarily, I stick to Bribie and close by areas and from what I’ve been able to find, I’m the only snake catcher currently registered on Bribie Island.”
Although we tend to see a lot of men catching snakes, for Chalon, it’s all about the task at hand.
“It's not something that just takes strength, even though at times that can be important,” she said. “It’s also about identifying and reading the behaviour of the snake, so you can decide the best approach to capture it.
“Take carpet pythons for example. Once you get a hold of them and start handling them and all that, they don’t often come back at you. They are beautiful snakes, elegant and gorgeous. A lot of it is each snake species has a different behaviour, especially when they're aggressive. How they behave when they're aggressive, if they're kind of just naughty, they’ll try to nip at you and you can see when they go to do that.
“I have been bitten a couple times by little carpet pythons and then once by a mildly venomous snake, but it was a dry bite. But it’s all in the way you handle them, the way you handle an eastern brown and the way you handle a mildly venomous or non-venomous snake is quite different.”
From barbecues, behind the television, under rubbish bins, bird aviaries, in the shed and even inside walls, there are so many places snakes will slide into for warmth and to hide.
“We tend to go and retrieve them from all the usual places and little hidey holes in and around the home,” Chalon said. “It’s great to have Judy with me, because it takes more than one person to catch a snake. And a lot of it is with most people, they want to come around, they want to ask you questions, things like is it dangerous, what type is it, they might have children or dogs they’re concerned about.
“Judy gets the initial call and has them watch it and give some information over the phone, so you kind of know what you’re getting into, whether it’s a little snake, big snake and of course once we get there and I go into catching mode, she makes sure people stay back and answers their questions as best she can. I'm the animal person, she's the people person, it's a good balance of personalities.”
Although for Judy now, she has a little bit more of a hands-on role.
“In the beginning, after Chalon had caught the snake I’d have to hold the bag on my knees in the car, I was a bit nervous, so I used to hold it out the window,” Judy said with a laugh. “I’m used to them now, but it’s taken a bit of time to get my nerves at the right level to hold them!”
Just a year into their official snake catching journey, Chalon and Judy are enjoying the opportunity to contribute to the Bribie community by helping fellow residents (both the people and the snakes!) when they can.
“For us, this isn’t about money or running a business,” Chalon said. “It’s our way of giving back to the community and also saving the snakes, so people don't feel like they have to kill them to get rid of them.
“It’s more of a service and it's good because it doesn't matter where we are on the Island, once we take that call, we can be there sooner rather than later.”
To contact Rid-A-Snake, call Judy on 0477 966 024.
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