A nine-week-old puppy has been saved from the grasp of a carpet python that sprung from a bush and coiled itself around the dog.
In footage of the close encounter captured on a home security camera, the owner of the puppy, Michelle van Schouwen, can be seen grabbing the snake's body in an attempt to wrangle it from her pet, a German Shepherd-Staffordshire Bull Terrier cross named Jasper.
The attack occurred on November 27 in the backyard of the owner's home in Sippy Downs, a suburb of the Sunshine Coast Region in Queensland, Australia.
In the video, van Schouwen and her daughter are seen responding to the pup's cries, initially hitting the snake with a cardboard Christmas wrapper roll. The dog was already being constricted by the python, which emerged from a chili bush.
"I got to the end of the patio and I sort of just froze and then screamed because I just saw this... python wrapping all around him," van Schouwen told 7News.
The owner said she couldn't tell the python's head from its tail, and so ended up picking the snake up and spinning around. Within seconds the snake had let go of the dog, which fled as the reptile was hurled to the ground.
The family said Jasper was bitten on the ear but has since recovered. The snake also survived the encounter and was safely relocated to nearby bushland.
The security footage was uploaded to YouTube by the dog owner's daughter on the day of the attack, with a caption detailing key moments of the encounter.
"The carpet python was reluctant to let the puppy go and the security vision shows how quickly it immobilized our active pup," it read. "Thankfully Jasper received only minimal injuries," the caption added, warning others to watch over their pet animals.
The case caught the attention of snake relocation expert Stuart McKenzie this week, who reported a rise in attacks on cats and dogs in recent days.
McKenzie said in a video uploaded to his business's Facebook page—Sunshine Coast Snake Catchers 24/7—on December 1 that snake breeding season is coming to an end and many species are hungry, warning small pets could be on the menu.
"I guess the best part of the story is that the dog is OK and the snake was unharmed as well. The snake is not doing anything wrong, it just sees the puppy as a food item. But obviously we don't want our pets getting eaten by snakes," he said.
"The owners did the right thing, were as gentle as possible to get the snake off and in the end everybody was unharmed, which was good," McKenzie added.
While Australians need a permit to interfere with wildlife, McKenzie conceded that most people who find a snake attacking their pet would be acting on instinct. He said the best way to untangle a carpet python is by the tail, which it uses to squeeze prey.
"Killing the snake is not necessary and there are ways of rescuing your pet safely and without having to harm the snake," McKenzie wrote.
Carpet pythons, the largest snake in the region, do not have fangs or venom. Instead, their jaws contain "small needle-like teeth which may cause substantial lacerations or punctures," the Snake Catchers 24/7 website says in a profile on the species.
