SNAKE season is in full swing thanks to warmer than usual spring temperatures across the Hunter.
Just last week, Cameron Park resident Trish Solomon's French bulldog Douglas Norman fell victim to a tiger snake bite in their backyard.
"We're relatively close to the new shopping centre where Woolworths is and you have to get through five yards to get to our house," she said.
"We're on a corner block on the main entrance into the estate, so there's not a minute a car isn't going by and with all those vibrations you wouldn't expect a snake to be around here.
"My daughter let him outside, made his breakfast and put it down and when she looked outside he was paralysed, it happened within minutes."
Douglas was raced to the emergency vet where he was showing symptoms of a snake bite, a test confirmed he had been bitten by a tiger snake.
Their furry friend was given the last antivenom available, initially injected with brown snake antivenom to help him while tiger snake venom was transferred to the vet from Morpeth.
"This time last year we never had concerns at all," Ms Solomon said.
"We don't have a swimming pool or trees, it's just mowed grass all the time and it was hard to believe what it was even when we saw the test results.
"It's very, very scary considering we live opposite Busy Bees childcare centre, it's just scary."
More than 500 people were hospitalised with venomous snake bites in 2021-22, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
Already, wildlife rescue groups and Hunter pest control services have been busy fielding calls requesting snake removals across the region.
Newcastle and Hunter Animal Control director Gary Bear said there was more red-bellied black snakes than anything else this season.
"The season kicked off two months ago and it's been running hot since then," he said.
"When the temperature gets to 25 degrees, that's when the snakes come out.
"They're all over the place, they're everywhere."
Mr Bear said he receives about six calls a day, and said people who spot a snake should keep an eye on it, but keep away from it.
Hunter Wildlife Rescue reptile rescuer Anil Lakkundi said more snakes are coming out to bask in the sun due to the warmer weather.
"In the Newcastle area we don't get too many eastern brown snakes, a lot of calls we get have been pythons, common tree snakes, golden-crown snakes and red bellies of course," he said.
"The best thing to do if you see a snake is to call WIRES, they can then give advice on what to do.
"People should try to maintain a safe distance, make sure pets and kids are safe and wait for a rescuer to see if the snake can be relocated.
"They should never try to handle snakes themselves, without knowing the species it can be quite dangerous."
Mr Lakkundi said anyone who is bitten by a snake should treat it as if it were poisonous and call Triple Zero.
He said it's important to stay calm and try not to move, and if possible apply a bandage from one end of a limb to the other, for example from the hand to the armpit or the foot to the groin.
"Snake venom travels through the lymphatic system, so the more someone panics, the more chance the venom can spread," he said.
"Always stay still, call an ambulance and get to hospital, that's the best course of action."
For more information on snakes or snake rescue, contact Hunter Wildlife Rescue on 0418 628 483 or WIRES at 1300 094 737.
