<Hear about the man bitten at home in Florida (naturally) by a black mamba, one of the world’s most deadliest snakes?
A resident of the central Florida town of Melbourne, he was rushed to a Miami hospital and apparently survived after being given 10 vials of anti-venom.
The man’s roommate had a permit to handle poisonous snakes. The mamba, a fast and aggressive predator, is native to Africa and can reach 14 feet in length.
Why do authorities allow any dangerous animals to be kept on private property?
For years, news accounts have covered the escapes and captures of privately owned wild cats, wolves, coyotes, reptiles and other dangerous native and nonnative animals—many times after innocent humans and domestic animals have been mauled or killed.
Dangerous wild and domestic animals belong in government-run zoos and other secure official sanctuaries—not in the house, apartment, ranch or farm next door. (5 JUNE 2005)
