Bengaluru: A rat snake that ingested a discarded sunscreen pack endured days of agony before being rescued from a village near Chitradurga and transported to a facility in Bengaluru for lifesaving treatment.Shreedevi, the owner of a farmhouse at Kallahalli village, 12km from Chitradurga, spotted an immobile snake in her pump house on Sept 16. On closer examination, she found the snake looked distressed. She contacted Snake Shivu, a seasoned wildlife rescuer, who noticed a bulge in its stomach. He assumed the snake had ingested some object, which could have torn its internal organs. He transported it to the People for Animal Wildlife Hospital in Kengeri.Senior veterinarian Dr Madhav HV confirmed the presence of a foreign body through physical examination and an X-ray. The sharp edges of the discarded sunscreen container had caused multiple lacerations to the snake’s stomach lining. “We meticulously removed the object and sutured the stomach wall securely to prevent any leakage of stomach contents into the coelomic (body) cavity. The muscle and skin layers were then closed,” explained Dr Madhav.The snake was administered post-operative antibiotics and pain medication to ensure a smooth and pain-free recovery. It is currently under observation and is responding well to post-operative care.The snake was in severe agony due to internal injuries when it was brought to the hospital, recalls Colonel Dr Navaz Shariff, chief veterinarian at PfA Wildlife Hospital. “It’s a dangerous misconception that snakes and other reptiles do not feel pain—they do, just like all other animals,” he said.————BOXPlastic poses threat to birds, mammals: ExpertBonnet macaques, cows and dogs ingest plastic bags containing food, which block their intestines, causing distress and pain. If left untreated, it could be fatal, said Colonel Dr Navaz Shariff, chief veterinarian at PfA Wildlife Hospital, Kengeri.In urban areas, birds use plastic material to build their nests. Newborn chicks fall prey to the plastic menace and get entangled in the strings. Squirrels also use plastic to nest, causing necrosis of their limbs.Snakes ingest plastic items when they smell like mice or rats as they use their sense of smell for hunting, he said.
