Cape cobra found at De Bakke home

Video

MOSSEL BAY NEWS - Mossel Bay-based snake catchers, Slangboere, safely removed a Cape cobra from the property of a home in De Bakke, Mossel Bay this morning, 5 December.

Slangboere's Devon de Villiers said he had already been on his way to a call-out for a herald snake in Hartenbos at about 11:30 today when he received a call asking for him to come to a house in De Bakke where people who had been doing work on the home that day had come across a Cape cobra in a storeroom at the bottom of the house.

Justin Lubbe, the man who first spotted the cobra, relayed the experience to Mossel Bay Advertiser, stating he felt lucky he had spotted it and was not bitten.

Lubbe said he had been working with a colleague at the house doing maintenance and renovation work when he went down to the storeroom where he had kept some of his materials.

Devon de Villiers safely removed the Cape cobra from the property. Video: Slangboere

He said he walked into the room, and when he turned around, he saw just a part of the snake, slithering into a pile of material to the side of him, near the door.

"Thankfully my eye caught it, but now I was stuck because the snake was between me and the door," said Lubbe.

He then called his colleague who came with a broom to remove the pile of material to see if they could get a better look at the reptile.

"There was a bit of plastic mesh in that pile and when we lifted it, we saw this snake looking back at us. We immediately put the mesh back down," he said.

This Cape cobra was removed from a property in De Bakke today, 5 December. Photo: Slangboere

Lubbe said he follows a Cape Town-based snake catcher on Instagram and had watched a few videos dealing with Cape cobras so was immediately able to recognise what the snake under the mesh was.

He said he called his cousin, who got him in touch with De Villiers.

De Villiers said that when he arrived at the property just 15 minutes after he had been called, the snake had moved to hide under some bricks at the side of the house.

"Cape cobras are not common in the De Bakke area, they are usually found in Hartenbos so it was a bit of an unusual call. I think the cobra may have gotten to De Bakke by hiding up in a vehicle from another area," said De Villiers.

"This Cape cobra was really calm. It was cold, and when their body temperatures are low, they are usually more relaxed. They can be more aggressive when they are warmer," he said.

"The guys who called us handled the situation perfectly. They moved away, kept a safe distance and watched the snake until we arrived, " he said.

He said the snake will be safely released in the greater Mossel Bay area once a suitable location has been identified.

To watch the video of Slangboere catching both the cobra and the Herald in Hartenbos, visit the Slangboere Facebook page. De Villiers can be contacted on 076 781 0528.

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