Rock Python Kills Full Grown Husky in Fla; notes on snake prey, human predation

[findi]

Hi All,
At least 45 species of non-native reptiles and amphibians have established breeding populations in Florida. The most notorious of these, the Burmese Python, Python bivittatus, has been much in the news in recent years. Recently, however, another of the state’s introduced giant constrictors grabbed the headlines. On Sept. 10, 2013, a Northern African Rock Python, P. sebae, killed a 60 pound husky in a suburban yard near the Everglades. While much has been made of the threats posed by large constrictors, what interested me most about this incident was the fact that the snake involved was quite small by Rock Python standards. Despite being only 10 foot long and 38 pounds in weight, the snake was able to overcome and kill a 60 pound dog.
Based on my experiences with large constrictors in the Bronx Zoo and the wild, I would guess that the attack was defensive in nature. The only 60 pound snake meal I’ve witnessed (a White-tailed Deer) involved a 17 foot long, 215 pound Green Anaconda…and its huge body appeared stretched to its limit. Read the rest of this article here http://bit.ly/1e6mzf8
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Best Regards, Frank Indiviglio

 

[pitbulllady]

I'd be willing to bet that dog grabbed first, and hung on. I've bred Huskies, and they are basically a prey drive on legs. Even cats don't come close to the typical Siberian Husky when it comes to a prey drive, and that's saying a LOT. I raised pups up with cats, chickens and other small animals, and without fail, the dogs would chase and kill any animal that moved if it was smaller than they were by the time they reached six months of age. NOTHING, not even an E-collar set on maximum, could stop them or convince them to ignore other animals. I had Sibes that would literally be screaming in pain from a shock and killing another animal at the same time. With constrictor snakes, they only use constriction as a defense mechanism if grabbed; release the hold on the snake, and the snake lets go, too, but a determined Siberian is not going to let go, even once the snake's coils get around its body. I am sure that someone here has had a Siberian that wasn't like that, but I've owned enough of them to know that those are the exceptions rather than the norm. Spotting a snake, most Siberians are going to attack it without hesitation, especially if it was moving.

pitbulllady

 

[findi]

I'd be willing to bet that dog grabbed first, and hung on. I've bred Huskies, and they are basically a prey drive on legs. Even cats don't come close to the typical Siberian Husky when it comes to a prey drive, and that's saying a LOT. I raised pups up with cats, chickens and other small animals, and without fail, the dogs would chase and kill any animal that moved if it was smaller than they were by the time they reached six months of age. NOTHING, not even an E-collar set on maximum, could stop them or convince them to ignore other animals. I had Sibes that would literally be screaming in pain from a shock and killing another animal at the same time. With constrictor snakes, they only use constriction as a defense mechanism if grabbed; release the hold on the snake, and the snake lets go, too, but a determined Siberian is not going to let go, even once the snake's coils get around its body. I am sure that someone here has had a Siberian that wasn't like that, but I've owned enough of them to know that those are the exceptions rather than the norm. Spotting a snake, most Siberians are going to attack it without hesitation, especially if it was moving.

pitbulllady

Hello,

Python sensory pits provide a detailed thermal image, which we believe gives an idea as to size of the approaching creature, etc. , so it would seem likely that the snake was reacting to a threat or attack. However, I've not observed snakes to release an animal in response to the creature letting go, at least in field situations; pressure was applied until movement/breathing ceases in those cases I've seen (formidable prey animals that were resisting, biting...capybara, caiman, etc; same re people handling wild snakes while tagging, etc; but plenty of individual variation I'm sure, best, Frank