South Australian dog owners warned as snake bite cases surge amid warmer weather

Dog owners in South Australia are being warned to stay on the lookout for deadly snakes in their homes or backyards following an increase in the number of dogs getting bitten throughout the state.

When Paul Kinnear came home from school pick-up on October 14, he thought it was strange that only one of his two dogs greeted him at the gate.

WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Snakes are on the move across SA.

After searching for his missing pet Maple, Kinnear discovered she was lying in her dog bed and was limp.

He immediately suspected she had been bitten by a snake.

“She was still breathing but just limp (and) we knew it was a snake bite,” he told 7NEWS.

His fears were confirmed when he found the metre-long brown snake dead in his backyard.

“The snake looked like it had been in a tug of war between the two dogs,” Kinnear said.

Kinnear rushed Maple to the Clare Valley vet clinic, about 100km north of Adelaide, however she could not be saved.

Over spring and summer the clinic usually sees about 20 pets with snake bites.

However this year there’s been a surge in the number of pets coming to the clinic after being bitten, veterinarian Dr Louise Lehmann said.

“We’ve upped our supplies of anti venom, so we’re carrying a lot more than we used to,” she said.

“We’ve had to borrow some from another clinic a coupe of times because we ran low, we weren’t expecting the numbers.”

Snake catchers said while there had not been an increase in the number of snakes across the state, vsibility of the reptiles has jumped and they are increasingly being seen in suburban spaces.

Rolly Burrell from Snake Catchers Adelaide, says the constantly changing weather could be to blame.

“I haven’t seen anything like this in 45 years of me doing it.

“We’ve had all this weird weather, it’s hot one minute, it’s cold the next.”

Snake catcher Dan Marshall from Barossa Reptile Service said an increase in housing developments could also be a contributing factor.

“(There’s a) lack of water bringing in food sources for snakes, bringing them closer to houses,” he said.

Kinnear said Maple’s sister Luna had not been coping well without her since she died.

“She’s lost without her sister,” he said.

“They were partners in crime.”

If you do spot a snake in your home or backyard, senior ecologist Karl Hillyard from the Department for Environment and Water said it was important to keep any kids or pets away.

“We do know that when people try and interact with snakes, that’s when they tend to have bites occur,” he said.