Woman sucks up venomous snake into her vacuum

A Queensland woman got the fright of her life while completing a household chore – but what she did next has been condemned by experts.

Living in Australia, most of us will have crossed paths with some kind of dangerous and deadly animals during our lifetimes.

It usually happens when we least expect it, and how we react can truly determine whether we are able to get on with our day, or require a trip to the hospital.

A Queensland snake catcher has seen a lot during his career, but what happened this week left him absolutely baffled.

The Hervey Bay local received a call from a couple at a holiday resort who told him they’d discovered a snake on their property.

The man said he was shocked at the situation. Picture: Facebook

The frightened couple had originally called the snake catchers because they needed help to remove the snake from their holiday unit.

But the man quickly called back and said “not to worry” as the wife had found a solution.

“He called back quickly saying not to worry because his wife had vacuumed it up,” the man told Newsweek.

“I explained that they are protected species and it would be cruel and illegal to leave it in there.

“They understood and were happy for us to come out.”

The snake catchers were called out to the scene. Picture: Facebook

When he arrived at the house, the vacuum cleaner had been placed on the front veranda with a plastic bag around the nozzle to prevent anything from escaping.

“Just when you think you’ve seen it all in this job, someone calls you and says their wife has sucked a snake up with the vacuum cleaner,” he captioned a video of the incident shared to Facebook.

“This is different,” he can be heard stating, as he can be seen carefully opening the vacuum cleaner and removing the extractor bag.

“I opened the bag that catches all the dust and it was inside there,” he explained.

“He is unharmed, just a little dusty and confused.”

The reptile was a newborn hatchling yellow-faced whip snake, a slender, fast-moving species that is often confused for the highly venomous eastern brown snake.

The snake is not considered dangerous to humans. Picture: Facebook

This type of snake is common throughout Australia and can be distinguished by their grey-brown bodies and yellowish faces, from which they derive their name.

Although this species is venomous, they are not considered dangerous to humans, according to the Australian Museum.

However, a bite could be extremely painful, with much local swelling.

The man said that he had been bitten by this type of snake before, likening it to a “bee sting”.