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THE LEADER (Surrey, British Columbia) 11 July 04 Sneaking up on a snake
Coiled up, Curvy the African rock python doesn't appear much of a threat.
Her size - 15 feet long, with a girth about that of a 12-year-old's head - gives the impression she'd move slow. And she certainly doesn't look 125 lbs.
But Curvy is anything but a lady.
A member of the second-nastiest snake family in the world, her species in the wild will take on a crocodile without a second thought.
This week, at South Surrey's Rainforest Reptile Refuge, which has been her home for the past 10 years, Paul Springate is hoping he gets Curvy on a good day.
That's because he's going in to take away and destroy her most precious possession: the eggs she laid last Sunday.
"It's going to be downright, bloody scary," Springate said. "I have to go in, blindfold her, quickly get her off (the eggs), and have somebody go in and quickly scoop the eggs out.
"She's known to be very, very violent. One mistake and that could be my last."
Snakes like Curvy typically lay between 30 and 50 eggs. Left to hatch and grow in captivity, at least two will survive to adulthood.
The eggs have to be destroyed because the refuge, a non-profit society which relies on donations to care for its injured and abandoned charges, simply doesn't have the room or the money to take on the task.
This will be at least the fifth clutch of eggs Curvy's had taken from her since arriving.
Springate hopes the drastic but necessary measure will send a message to the public.
Too many people continue to buy exotic pets, not realizing the commitment reptiles like Curvy require, he said. Many live 20 years or more. Curvy could live until she's 40.
"People should not have these animals. They're not friendly, they're not domesticated, and you cannot tame them," Springate said.
Curvy's clutch would not face this fate if she was in the wild where she belongs, he added.
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