Teachig Snake Saftey! how and what do you teach??

[Epacris]

A great question! This is a passion of mine. Krys and Aussie have made some excellent suggestions.

My tips are:
- All snakes are protected and it is illegal (and immoral IMO, and dangerous) to kill them.
- Snakes are much more scared of you than you are of them.
- People are almost always bitten when they are trying to kill a snake.
- Be cautious around snake habitat, long grass, piles of logs.
- Always wear sensible shoes when in snake habitat (and leather gloves if appropriate).
- Learn as much as you can about snakes. Get yourself a snake identification book.
- Learn the correct first aid for snake bite.
- Always carry 4 compression bandages (not crepe bandages) when in snake habitat.
- If you are lucky (IMO ) enough to see a snake, remain calm, walk away.

I have always loved these comments from Brian Bush, a passionate snake advocate:

In the past 40 years I have met many people who believe tiger snakes have chased them. However, I have yet to meet someone that has been caught by one!

More people die each year in Australia from horse riding related accidents than snakebite. We do not go around hitting horses on the head with a shovel! Nor do we have as negative an attitude to Australia's deadliest venomous animal: the honeybee, an exotic introduced from Europe!

Not sure if I’m allowed to post the link, just google “Brian Bush Snakes”.

HTH