SNAKES continue to turn up in odd spots on the Border as the reptiles seek refuge from the heat.
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The unwanted guests are turning up in toilets, basements, and even a cutlery drawer at a Beechworth home.
Wodonga snake catcher Tristan Hamilton is getting called to three jobs a day on average.
“During the last few days with this weather, they’re all trying to get out of the heat and get into shelter,” he said.
“Snakes die more easily from heat than they do the cold.
They’re turning up absolutely everywhere. They don’t want to be handled by us or trapped, so they’re not very happy.
- Beechworth snake catcher Sue Hiatt
“They can handle the cold, but when there are days like these they looking for shelter, just like us.
“They’ve been around pools, at a few businesses with shipping containers and businesses with rats and mice.”
They also like chicken coops as potential source of food.
Browns and red-bellied black snakes have been most commonly sighted, followed by occasional jobs for tiger snakes in areas including the Kiewa River.
Mr Hamilton often gets called to new housing estates as the construction digs up the snakes’ environment.
Beechworth catcher Sue Hiatt said she had been busy since spring, getting called out to a job a day on average.
But the last few days have been particularly busy with people urged to shut their doors.
Ms Hiatt attended the Beechworth home on Saturday after the brown snake was spotted in the cutlery drawer, causing the occupant to bolt out of the property in fear.
But by the time Ms Hiatt got there, it had disappeared, having likely made its way back outside.
“They’re turning up absolutely everywhere,” she said.
“Most of the time they’re agitated due to the time of year and our intervention.
“They don’t want to be handled by us or trapped, so they’re not very happy.”
She urged people to keep an eye on the animals to ensure they could be located by catchers.
Once they’re caught, the catchers take the snakes away and release them in areas away from homes.
Ms Hiatt said most people who get bitten had tried to kill the snake.
“I understand that it does happen,” she said.
“Living in the country, people might have little kids and it does happen.
“But it is highly illegal.”
The Eastern Brown Snake is considered the most dangerous snake in Australia.