Venomous eastern brown snake similar to boot dweller

Construction worker finds venomous brown snake in his boot

A construction worker came dangerously close to suffering a deadly snake bite when he started to put on his work boots, realizing at the last moment that there was a venomous eastern brown snake snoozing inside.

Luckily, the snake’s scales caught his eye just as he was about to pick up his boots. And after allowing himself a moment to go into “panic mode,” he contacted Gunter Glaser of Darling Downs Snake Catchers for help.

The construction worker admitted that he left the boots out on the porch overnight. This is an ill-advised choice anywhere, especially in the summer months, but even more so in his home country of Australia.

“[The snake] wasn’t noticed coming up onto the veranda and into the boot in the warmer part of the previous day,” Glaser explained in a Facebook post. “The construction worker only noticed it when he went to put the boots on in the morning to go to work.”

Arriving at the home, Glaser carefully (and with an incredible degree of nonchalance) pulled the reptile from the boot, revealing a 4-foot eastern brown snake. “So,” he said, dangling the large snake in front of the camera, “don’t leave your boots outside.”

Glaser clarified that he typically would’ve exercised more caution with the venomous species. Because it’s now winter in Australia, however, snakes are at their most sluggish.

Finding eastern browns and other snakes in shoes isn’t uncommon – so keep your shoes inside

As the snake catcher explained, the construction worker is actually lucky that the eastern brown in his boot was so large. Thanks to its size, its scales were clearly visible from above. Had it been a smaller snake, he likely wouldn’t have known it was there until it was too late.

Leaving shoes out on the porch isn’t something we typically think twice before doing. Whether the shoes are wet or muddy or we simply kick them off before heading in the door, it happens all the time. As this situation illustrates, however, this isn’t the best idea.

Eastern brown snakes might not be native to the US, but copperheads, cottonmouths, and other venomous species are. And they all love shoes just as much as eastern browns.

A snake’s preferred hiding place is somewhere safe, dark, and warm. A human shoe fits the bill perfectly. Bags, by the way, provide a similar level of comfort for a roaming reptile.

“I often get called to schools to remove snakes,” Glaser said. “I cringe when I see the students’ bags on the floor on the veranda and most of them open. There are racks to put the bags on, but many of the kids don’t use them. They could potentially pick their bag up and take a snake home and not know it.”

The moral of the story? Don’t leave shoes or open bags outside if possible. If you do, double-check their insides before picking them up, and especially before carrying them inside.