At RESQ, every soul has a story!
November 28, 2021
by Nachiket Utpat
It was around 10 in the morning when we got a call for a snake rescue. Not more than 15 mins drive from the RESQ TTC, we had to take a detour due to the narrow road to get to the scene. As we approached the epicentre of the mob, about 50 odd people, we were directed towards an excavated construction site. The excavated pit was about 15-20 feet deep, and we were informed on the way to the location of this incident that the snake was caught with sort of a rope snare. We immediately rushed to the individual holding the rope that had caught the snake, as the rope was kind of a maanjha and would have easily strangulated the snake or cut through its scales. The snake was identified as a Cobra and it had probably found itself in this unwarranted situation possibly trying to make a meal of the Checkered Keelback, that kept popping it’s head out of the water every now and then.
Getting the cobra out immediately was important for two reasons; one, because it was a evident that the snare around its neck was pretty tight as it tried to pull out of it which would have made it worse and two, because it would have definitely died out of exhaustion had it been left to it’s current state.
So we swiftly pulled out the snake, and cut the rope that had pulled it for god knows how long, however the tightened noose was still around its neck and it was super important to get the snake back to the centre to cut it loose. Accompanied by Nishant and Sonesh, two very experienced rescuers, we wasted no time to get to the centre and get it out of the snake bag. We were extremely tensed while doing so, hoping that the snake still had some fight left in it until we remove the noose. Thankfully the reptile had held up really well and the noose too had gotten loose and made it’s way until it’s mid body.
A quick health check post that and the reptile was ready to go back to wild where it rightfully belonged. No matter the animal, no matter the condition, we at RESQ always strive to get these wild inhabitants a second chance.
#speciesnobar