What to do if bitten by a venomous snake.

It's summer in Australia and that means reptiles and more specifically, snakes.

Black Betty is a non venomous Black headed python. Found in the top of Australia, she has been living with us for over 15 years

A lot of people are scared of snakes, and living in a country where a large majority of them are venomous only adds fuel to that fire. In fact 5 out of 10 of the worlds most venomous snakes call Australia home.
It's an unfair reputation though. If you look at the actual medical records there are quite a small number of snake bites each year and even less hospitalisations and fatality's.
Approximately 1-2 people a year die from snakebites in Australia and these are generally in remote areas a long way from medical care.

Throughout history there has been a lot of misconception and misinformation regarding snakebites and their treatment. Many different methods have been used from "sucking out the venom" to scarification (cutting the skin to remove the infected blood). None of them are at all useful however and may even contribute to your demise.

Carlos the Bredli python enjoying some sun. All pythons are non venomous

99% of the time if bitten by a snake the venom does not enter the bloodstream but is injected into the muscle tissues and fat or whatever else is there, rarely a vein or artery though.
This means the venom doesn't travel through the bloodstream rather it travels through the lymphatic system.
Basically for the venom to move through your body and to your heart/organs etc it requires you to move those muscles and mechanically transport the venom around.

If you are able to keep the limb or whatever was bitten still you will have a far greater chance of coming out on top.

First thing to do if bitten.

Immobilize the limb. If you have a bandage you do a compression bandage around the bite and all the way up and down the limb, not too tight but tight enough to try and keep the muscles moving. Next is to splint the leg/arm (most common places to be bitten). Again, preventing movement especially in the muscles is key, try and splint whatever was bitten as if it were broken. Finally, call for help. Antivenom is widespread throughout Australia and these days it doesn't even matter the species, most hospitals will have a supply of antivenom and will be able to treat you quickly and efficiently.

If for whatever reason you cant call for help, eg out of service, no phone, whatever. Stay. Still.
The aborigines method for surviving snake bites for the last couple hundred thousand years was to lay down under a tree and not move for 3 days. Prop yourself under a tree or somewhere safe, with as little movement as possible and then just stay as still as you can.

It's hard because people can panic when faced with a situation like this but staying calm and doing the right things can be the difference between life and death. We are very lucky in this country to have a top class medical system and snake bite deaths are few and far between but it is still a possible threat.

Wormy the coastal python who is the most vicious of all our snakes. Can hardly feel it when he bites

Snakes are incredible animals with an unfair reputation, very few are aggressive and most injuries are sustained from people messing with them or trying to move them/hurt them.
I think education is the key to reducing fear around snakes,the unknown scares people and snakes are very misunderstood, especially given how prevalent they are in this country.

Next time you see a danger noodle just let them on their way, they don't want to hurt you they just tryna live their best snakey life.