A team of veterinarians have successfully conducted an operation to remove a fishhook stuck in the mouth of a venomous snake.
The cobra de capello snake was brought to the College of Veterinary Science & Animal Husbandry of the OUAT by Snake Helpline members in a critical condition from Jaleswar in Baleswar district on Sunday.
The veterinary doctors were shocked to see the presence of a long fishhook with a thread inside the snake in an x-ray report. They performed the surgery on the snake to remove the foreign body. The operation took about 30 minutes.
“In the x-ray report, we found that the fishhook was stuck in the snake’s esophagus area, around four inches deep from its mouth. We tried to remove it manually, but it was not possible. Then, we performed the surgery after administering a mild dose of anesthesia,” said a veterinary doctor, who was part of the team.
“The snake will now undergo a normal routine care,” he said. After that, it would be put on liquid diet for some days. The wound would be healed within seven to ten days. Later, it would be released into a natural habitat, he added.
The cobra de capello had been spotted by locals in the Jaleswar area in a pond. It was rescued by the Snake Helpline members from the water.
The snake was suffering from pain in water without being able to take food for past four days due to the fishhook. “We rushed it to the OUAT for surgery. The position of the fishhook stuck in its mouth was detected in the x-ray. Finally, the fishhook was removed by the vets before it could cause more injuries to the snake. We will make arrangement to release the snake in the area, from where it was rescued,” said a Snake Helpline member.