Archives of The Cold Blooded News

The Newsletter of the Colorado Herpetological Society

Volume 29, Number 4;   April, 2002

Training in How to Handle Reptiles Will Be Offered to Rescue Personnel

The fatal snake incident in Aurora this week points to a problem area experts hope to solve in Colorado Springs: police and rescue personnel weren't properly trained to deal with the situation.

In response to that attack, Colorado Reptile Rescue and the Humane Society are joining forces to present training for first responders. Police, firefighters, animal control officers, and paramedics will learn about reptile culture and handling.

Officers need to know the difference between an iguana, which looks more fierce than it is, and a water monitor - a lizard - which is a carnivore with some "serious" teeth, says Shawna Pugmire, the southern Colorado coordinator for Colorado Reptile Rescue.

Emergency personnel also need to know the difference between a usually docile Burmese python and a more aggressive reticulated python.

Don Dobyns, a Colorado Springs reptile expert and owner, served a number of years on a police force in South Carolina. Because of his hobby he handled a lot of reptile calls. He is now an information resource for the local humane society.

The key is for officers not to panic, and to know how to handle snakes, he says. A 42-pound python like Monty, the snake in Aurora, could have been removed if officers had known what they were doing, he says.

Training sessions for fire, police, paramedics and animal control officers are scheduled for 1-4 p.m. March 9, and 9 a.m.-noon, March 10 at the Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region, 610 Abbott Lane.

Call 331-3748 or 473-1741.