Meet Mook: Seatides snake catcher gives son unique swimming pool find as a pet
INTERESTING FIND
Seatides ‘snake catcher’ Jonathan Broughton and his son Levi with the brown house snake he found cooling off in his swimming pool.
Image: SUPPLIED
WHEN Seatides ‘snake catcher’ Jonathan Broughton found a brown house snake cooling off in his swimming pool, he saw more than just another rescue - he saw the perfect pet for his six-year-old son, Levi.
Broughton, 37, a self-employed aircon technician, said he wanted Levi, who is also fondness of snakes, to have a pet snake so he could learn first-hand about how interesting they were.
“The baby brown house snake was enjoying a swim in the pool due to the heat last week. I have an enclosure and we are excited to keep the snake as a pet. My son named the snake Mook. I also have a red-tailed boa constrictor. To keep the constrictor, I have an alien and invasive species permit,” added Broughton.
He said his love for snakes started when he was 14 years old.
“At the time, I had a face off with a snake that was trying to get to the baby birds. As I was trying to put the birds back into their nest, I heard a thud on the floor. When I looked down, it was a black mamba that was about 2.5 metres long. The snake started lifting its body up and brought itself to eye level with me. I was a threat, taking its food. I remained calm, ignored the snake and put the birds back. The dogs started barking and the snake slithered away,” he said.
“I had a keen interest in snakes and their behaviour from that day, and I visited the library all the time to learn about snakes and how to handle them,” he added.
Broughton started voluntarily removing snakes from people's homes and businesses in the Tongaat and surrounding areas after he completed his schooling.
He said he owned his first snake when he was 15 years old, and since then, he had always had snakes as pets.
In 2009, he was bitten by a semi-poisonous night adder. He was hospitalised, but recovered well.
He said in Tongaat, snakes that were commonly found in summer were the bush snake, the night adder, or the brown house snake, which he receivesd regular call-outs for.
He said people would see snakes more often in summer due to the heat, as snakes emerge to search for water.