Invasive Florida Python Kills 60-pound Dog
OutdoorHub Reporters 09.16.13
A family in Miami-Dade County are in mourning after the death of a beloved Siberian husky. It seems that Burmese pythons are not the only invasive snake in the Sunshine State, this incident was perpetrated by an African rock python. According to CBS News, local wildlife officials say that a number of the snakes may be living in the area.
“We do know there is a colony of these types of pythons concentrated in a six-square-mile area in southwest Miami-Dade County,” said Jorge Pino, a Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) spokesperson.
FWC officials said the snake that entered the home of Michelle Rojas last month was upwards of 10 feet and weighed 36 pounds. Slithering through the backyard, it soon met the family’s loyal protector, a 60-pound husky named Duke. Rojas told NBC6 that the python killed the dog in a matter of minutes. Family members attempted to uncoil the snake and even tried using gardening scissors to kill the python, but its skin was too tough.
“We couldn’t cut the snake,” Rojas said. “He bent the metal.”
A FWC employee was later able to find and eliminate the snake.
Due to their large size, rock pythons have a dangerous reputation in Africa. The species ranks as the largest snake in their native continent and among the top five in the world, in some cases rivaling the green anaconda and their other invasive-to-Florida cousin, the Burmese python. Despite the fact that these snakes rarely attack humans unprovoked, they are widely feared for their ability to crush animals many times their own weight by coiling around the victim. They are known to prey on domestic animals such as goats and even wild antelope, despite their apparent lack of speed. Hunting for these pythons are legal in Florida and encouraged as an effort to cull invasive reptiles.
“Basically the FWC has been actively targeting, trying to eradicate this population, and we’ve been working with a variety of partners. And we’ll be increasing our efforts, including expanding the search areas,” said Carli Segelson, another FWC spokesperson. “And we’ve already canvassed the neighborhoods nearby where the incident happened, so we’ve provided information to residents explaining the situation and providing safety tips to them.”
Rojas says she will be keeping her other dog inside from now on.
