Lovic searched the bathroom. In all, he captured twelve baby monocled cobras. All of these were found in one tiny room! Granted, this was a hotspot for the snakes, but these ones can lay over forty at a time. If there were no more in the bathroom, they had to be somewhere else in the house. What would he find in the rest of the house? He moved on with trepidation.
Maybe one bag was not going to be enough. Fearing what he was up against, Lovic reinforced his supplies and turned all of his attention to this one goal; finding all of the snakes in this house. Who knows where the mother was hiding…
One of These Snakes Meant Many More
Finding a baby cobra is a bad sign. A very bad sign. Cobras lay 60 or more eggs at a time. Discovering a single hatchling portended a much larger infestation than Lovic anticipated. And still, the mother snake is on the loose. It keeps getting worse.
These cobras are monocled cobras — the most venomous snake in Thailand. It’s also the most common snake in Thailand. Just one bite by a monocled cobra and death is quick yet painful. Lovic snagged one snake, secured it in the bag, and went off hunting for the rest. Time was of the essence; he needed to find the rest of the eggs, and it was vital to draw the mother out.
A Bag of Snakes
There were 37,000 reports of snake invasions in Bangkok homes in 2018. Surprisingly, in all of Thailand, snake bite deaths are rare. There are only about a dozen venomous snake fatalities a year. An antidote for their venom is readily available in Thailand, and most people manage to get to the hospital in time.
The young snakes kept popping up and Lovic continued filling his bag with baby cobras. He was set on protecting his friend and his family. However, the baby monocled cobras just kept coming and coming — this was becoming a larger and larger problem every minute.
Into the Next Room
With tools in hand, Lovic stealthily entered another room. He walked as lightly as possible so as not to alert the tiny wiggling intruders who had likely hatched there, innocently assuming it was their home. The baby snakes were not trying to cause anyone any trouble, and they certainly didn't know that they were being hunted.
Snake intrusions in Thailand are rising every year. The reason is attributed to an increase in construction on natural marsh habitats, which is forcing snakes out of their homes and into people’s homes. Searching every dark corner and secret place little snakes might hide, Lovic scoured the entire room until he was sure all were caught.
Checking the Hallway
When he got to the hallway, he found more snakes. Some hid behind a row of glass bottles. More of the baby cobras were hiding out in empty aluminum cans. It was like they were coming out of the woodwork. This was a hydra situation. He’d bag one, and two more would slither into sight.
This snake rescue was going to take much longer than he had anticipated. What had started out as a routine snake check had turned into one of the defining snake rescues of Lovic's career. Just how much longer would he be in this cursed house?