Janne Torkkola reveals what it’s like to be a snake catcher

WHEN you think of snake catchers, you think of a dangerous job dealing with writhing reptiles. But is that the reality?

What it’s like to be a snake catcher

MEET Janne Torkkola.

When he was seven, he was given an encyclopedia on reptiles by a zoologist. This began a lifelong love affair with reptiles that now sees Mr Torkkola catching snakes for a living.

Based in Brisbane, Mr Torkkola is one of around a dozen snake catchers in the city who serves as a welcome presence for customers who have found themselves trapped in the house with an uninvited guest.

Two months into the peak season for snakes, he told news.com.au that for him, a typical day could start at 5am with a frantic call and end as late as 11:30pm. But snake-catching is a 24-hours-a-day job.

The people on the other end of the phone have varied from customers who are absolutely terrified and panicked to those who are quite calm and concerned about the welfare of the snake. He might start the day with a python in a chicken coop and end it with an Eastern Brown Snake writhing in public car park.

It’s definitely not a gig for the faint-hearted, or the untrained. Mr Torkkola has been handling snakes since he was a wee lad in Victoria’s Dandenong Ranges after migrating from Europe.

“The change in environment and the wildlife you find in Australia just blew my mind,” he said. “My friends and I were going off all the time after school and on weekends, tipping over rocks and catching lizards.

“I caught my first snake at eight or nine years old.”

One of his most challenging gigs was a carpet python which coiled itself in a toaster. An electrician had to be on hand to untangle that mess. Or recently, when he was confronted in a roof space with two large male pythons — full of testosterone — that was in the middle of a spring time ritual combat. He caught a tiny nip on the arm for that effort.

But while most people fear snakes, Mr Torkkola wants to bust the myth that snakes are particularly dangerous animals, or that his job is particularly dangerous one.

“They’re just really misunderstood animals,” he said. “There’s a really pervasive negative attitude towards snakes in general. This is throughout the world, but particularly in Australia. People aren’t educated about snakes and they’re not the villains like they’re portrayed in the media.

“Snakes don’t want to be near humans; they want to be left alone. The two instances in which people are most commonly bit by snakes are when people accidentally step on them or when people try to kill them or pick them up on their own.”

He said that even the Eastern Brown Snake, which is causes the most bites in Australia, will only be defending itself. “It almost always gives a very defensive display before it resorts to a bite. It’s giving you all the possible signs to leave it alone,” he said.

“Australia does have the most venomous snakes in the world but they’re not the threat the media makes it out to be,” he added. “They’re shy and sensitive animals who do their best not to be seen by you. Even with the red-bellied black snake, I don’t believe we have any recorded deaths here. They’re more likely to give you the tactical headbutt than a bite.”

While as a kid he didn’t exactly think that he would be catching snakes for a living, he had aspirations to work in the animal welfare field. With degrees in science, zoology and genetics, Mr Torkkola is also hoping to turn his love for snakes into a PHD project.

He was a pet Woma Python called Anubis and takes home injured snakes he comes across on his job to nurse them back to health.

He said most snake catchers want to increase the education about snakes and show how beautiful they are. Unfortunately, when some people find out what he does for a living, they react with repulsion.

He uses the internet and social media such as Google Adwords, Instagram, YouTube and Truelocal to market his business. But he also uses those platforms to put the education piece out there and teach the public about the reality of snakes.