Sunshine Coast woman ‘handcuffed’ by pet python

A Sunshine Coast woman was bitten and “handcuffed” by her pet black-headed python before she was rescued with a 3am phone call.

Snake catcher Stuart McKenzie, who goes by ‘Snake Catcher 24/7’, put his name into practise during the early morning call from the woman’s distressed roommate.

The Sippy Downs woman had been handling the snake when it bit her on the thumb before constricting her hands together until she was unable to separate them.

Her roommate, who was woken up by her screams, tried to help her uncoil the snake before they decided to call Mr McKenzie.

“It was a first for me in terms of someone calling and them having to resolve the issue without me actually being there,” Mr McKenzie said.

He asked the roommate to send a photo so he could understand the situation more clearly. After 20 minutes of guidance on the phone, the snake was safely removed from the woman and placed back in its enclosure.

Mr McKenzie called the roommate a “legend” for the way he handled the situation.

“It wasn’t life threatening, just stressful. But he was keeping her calm and managing to stay relaxed himself,” he said.

Mr McKenzie said it seemed as though the woman loved having her pet snake and wouldn’t think of giving it away after the incident.