WONDALGA Crescent, Nowra residents are on snake watch after one home-owner lost two family dogs to tiger snake bites in the past two weeks.
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Sharon Leng says she’s had 12 snake sightings on her property in the past two months and more throughout the street.
Her mother, Helen Robertson, said 12 snakes was a few too many.
“I know we live near the environment, but I come from out west on a property in the bush and I never saw that many snakes,” she said.
The family is at a loss about what to do; they’ve contacted a number of wildlife agencies but there is no simple solution.
“Before our dogs were attacked we had seen snakes about the street – a neighbour two doors down had three out the front of her house, next door had one on his driveway.
“An Alaskan Malamute was bitten in our street, and another guy had a tiger snake in his kitchen.
“I’m concerned because there are about eight children in this street including a couple of toddlers.
“We have called the council and the Native Animal Network Association (NANA) and WIRES, who passed us onto Taronga Park Zoo to get advice, but it seems there’s nothing anyone can do.
“I’m scared of every little thing now, my daughter left a hose laying out the other night and I nearly had a heart attack,” Mrs Robertson said.
Shoalhaven snake wrangler Dusty Jones believes about 35 snakes cross the average property in a year and of those most home-owners would see one.
“One of the main reasons there are so many tiger snakes around Terara and that area is that there is a big canal and tiger snakes love wet areas,” he said.
Mr Jones said an abundance of frogs and lizards, the snake’s staple diet, attracted them to the area.
“I’ve been called to that area often, there are a lot of snakes around there. “I’ve also been called to nearby Nowra High School to remove snakes on a few occasions.”
Mr Jones said that although not naturally aggressive, if they feel threatened tiger snakes would strike.
He rates tiger snakes among Australia’s most venomous.
“The lady in Wondalga Crescent has got to be vigilant,” he said.
He explained one of the safest ways to remove a snake from a property was to use the garden hose with a fast jet of water.
“If you hit it in the head with the water and then use that jet of water to direct it off your property, at least you can do it while standing back,” he said.
Dusty Jones can be contacted for advice and snake removal on 0423 958059.
