This startling headline is not new, but it is becoming more common each summer in Australia. Snakes can not only find their way into your toilet bowl, they can swim through sewers and contort themselves through the s bend of your toilet pan to say hello.
Is it an urban legend, a joke, or a valid concern? According to experts, unfortunately, it can happen. Not only can snakes come up through the toilet, but other critters like rats, squirrels, and tree frogs can too. However, this is not a very common occurrence, so you can breathe a sigh of relief.
A snake catcher from Queensland Wildlife Solutions told the Courier Mail he only retrieves 10 snakes a year from toilets, so it definitely happens but it's not likely that every household in Brisbane or even Australia will experience a snake emerging from their toilet bowl.
Snakes can enter toilets, but not through pipes
There have been many recorded instances of people finding snakes in their toilet bowls, across the world.
Yes, the one on the roof. Since bathroom plumbing is usually connected through ventilation pipes on the roof, snakes can slither their way through the ventilation system and, soon, into your john. Snakes can slither their way up anything that will lead them to the roof—such as trees.
The chances of finding a snake in your toilet are extremely low. The rarity of this is the exact reason why these incidents make newspaper headlines.
According to Ray Mitchell from Mitchell Pest Services, noticing that "toilet paper has been chewed on or shredded" could be a red flag that a snake has made its way into your bathroom—especially if the roll doesn't look like there are usual tear marks on it.
A snake can get into an opening on the connecting pipes, the inspection chamber, septic tank, soak-away pit (like a big crack on the cover slab) and conveniently make its way into the pipe that links the toilet bowl to these structures, then up, into the house.
"Including the brown, tiger, black, taipan, death adder and certain sea snakes and all these snakes are found in Queensland," Mr Farry said. "Most Australian snake bites are associated with minimal local pain and bite marks can be easily missed."
When it gets too hot and dry, they seek places with moisture, as some Australians are quickly learning. Luke Huntley, a snake catcher in Queensland, East Australia, had to remove snakes from people's bathrooms, as the country experiences a record-setting heat wave.
In Australia, snakes sometimes slither into suburban backyards and homes. When the weather gets warm, they lounge in the sun.
Snakes enter a building because they're lured in by dark, damp, cool areas or in search of small animals, like rats and mice, for food. Snakes can be discouraged from entering a home in several ways. Keeping the vegetation around the house cut short can make the home less attractive to small animals and snakes.
Snake In The Toilet
The phobia or fear of snakes (Ophidiophobia) is real.
Guinea hens, turkeys, pigs, and cats will also help keep snakes away. If foxes are indigenous to your area, fox urine is a very good natural repellent for snakes when spread around your property.
The ventilation pipes connect to the drainpipes to let air and gasses escape and avoid too much pressure build-up. Once a snake has access to the ventilation pipe, it can easily get into the drainpipe and then the shower or toilet.
In fact, it's fairly common for snakes to make their way into homes and commercial structures through small holes and cracks. Snakes can easily make a home in a crawl space, but they're also quite capable of moving into your attic or any room of the house for that matter.
Snakes will hide behind the refrigerator, under the oven, under your bed, or inside cabinets. Snakes will avoid human activity. Some of the most common areas of the house to find a snake include crawl spaces, basements, garages, and attics (can snakes climb?)
Ammonia is a common snake repellent. Snakes hate the smell of ammonia and won't come near it. Soak rags in ammonia and place them in unsealed plastic bags. Leave the bags where you usually see snakes to keep them away.
Use household items such as caustic soda, pour it inside the toilet to prevent snake appearing in the toilet and solve problem that prevent snake from entering the house such as sulfur powder, engine oil or kerosene mix with water and pour it at the drainage area or entrance of the house.
Since snakes are coldblooded and cannot regulate their own body temperature, they seek out cold spaces during warm summer months. Bathrooms are not only cool, but also provide the pests with darkness and moisture. Some of their favorite resting areas include underneath sinks, inside or around toilets, and in tubs.
Australia's snake season generally hits between September and April as they start to venture out looking for food or a mate, but this can be brought forward if the end of winter and start of spring are unseasonably warm.
If you find a dry, scaly sheet of the skin or a crumpled heap somewhere close to an entrance into the walls of your home or small space areas. If you are inspecting a dusty area or crawl space, you might notice slither tracks that indicate where a snake has traveled. Snakes have a distinctive smell that is noticeable.