Gold Coast man fined for surfing with pet snake

A Gold Coast man who went viral for surfing with his pet carpet python has been slapped with a hefty fine.

A Gold Coast man who took his pet snake out for a surf has been fined.

Footage of surfer Higor Fiuza and his carpet python Shiva longboarding at Rainbow Bay, near Snapper Rocks, went viral last month.

At the time, Mr Fiuza said the three-year-old snake had been surfing at least 10 times and “was a natural”.

“She is such an amazing snake,” Mr Fiuza said.

“I always took her to the beach and she loved to be in the water swimming, so one day I decided to take her out for a surf and she loved it.

“Usually, when she doesn’t like something, she starts hissing, but she doesn’t hiss [in the water]. She is always chill.”

Queensland’s Department of Environment and Science, however, wasn’t impressed.

After an investigation, the department slapped Mr Fiuza with a $2322 fine for taking the native species out in public without permission.

Senior wildlife officer John McDonald said the surfer was also issued with a warning for not meeting online reporting requirements.

“The man was brought to our attention when he appeared in local media taking his python into the surf,” Mr McDonald said.

“Our investigation found the man had a permit to keep native animals, but he was issued with a penalty infringement notice for breaching section 88a of the Nature Conservation Act.”

Higor Fiuza surfing with his carpet python Shiva. Picture: Instagram.

Mr Fiuza was slapped with a fine. Picture: Instagram.

Mr McDonald said permit conditions prohibited animals from being removed from their licensed premises unless it was for a trip to the vet, selling or giving the animal to another permit holder, or taking it to an authorised display.

“To take an animal out in public or display it requires a separate permit from the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries,” he said.

Mr McDonald said taking native pets out in public could cause the animals unnecessary stress. He said they could behave unpredictably when removed from their enclosures.

“Snakes are obviously cold-blooded animals, and while they can swim, reptiles generally avoid water,” Mr McDonald said

“The python would have found the water to be extremely cold, and the only snakes that should be in the ocean are sea snakes.”

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