Neighbours freaking out about my under house python- Mr Hissy

[MrHissyLives]

I live on tropical northern Australia and have had a resident carpet python living under my house. My kids call him Mr Hissy. I’ve been here 15 years and have seen him about half a dozen times, usually sliding in or out between the slats that close off the under side of my house. Carpet pythons are famously zen and most Aussies are happy to have one in their shed as they won’t bother you and keep the rats sorted.

Anyhow, I heard dramatic screaming last evening and rushed out to see my terrified neighbour frozen in fear, looking over our fence as Mr Hissy went back in under my house. I explained he has been there forever and is harmless but she was having a proper freak out and shouting that she couldn’t sleep ever again knowing he was next door. I said that there would be dozens mores snakes in our tropical gardens that she had never seen and she had lived there for three years and clearly Mr Hissy had never bothered her. This did not help. Her husband arrived home and said his wife was terrified of snakes and Mr Hissy Had.To.Go. In fact, he would call his cousin to come and remove Mr Hissy. I said no. Mr Hissy was on my property and was welcome to stay. They gave me death stares and left.

I do understand that phobias are irrational but fuck me, Mr Hissy has never done anything to them. I’m certainly not letting some random cousin come and get Mr Hissy- he will either take him away and kill him or release him somewhere where he won’t survive. In fact pythons are a protected species and only authorised wildlife removalists can move them as they will know the release places where the snake will most likely survive.

I’ve always got on well with these neighbours up till this point. Should I tell them that if they pay for an authorised wildlife remover to come and get Mr Hissy, I will allow it? Would that be a reasonable compromise? I really don’t want Mr Hissy to go, but is it worth falling out with my neighbours over?

So YABU- let neighbours pay to remove Mr Hissy
YANBU- Mr Hissy stays

Tell her to move. They’re a protected native species, not a pet and they keep rodents away. What a drama llama. Why move to FNQ if you’re afraid of snakes? (I don’t love them, but they’re fine outside…. I’m from tiger snake country down south. Aggro, bitey bastard things.)

You print out the law on pythons and write a note stating that you absolutely don't allow them or any agent of their's to enter any part of your property, especially if the intent is to remove Mr Hissy.
So they get rid of him and another one moves in, how would this pan out? What if the rat population gets out of hand? Leave things as they are.

I wouldn't be keen myself, no

I loveeeee Australia and hope to revert there soon, but the snakes and spiders scare the life out of me (from London)

I mean she's defo living in the wrong country 🤣 tell her leave mr hissy, he won't hurt a fly - only the rats

Seriously though, how can she not be comfortable knowing there is a snake next door, when there is snakes EVERYWHERE in Australia lol

I know right! Of all the places to live if you’re terrified of snakes- a tropical acreage in FNQ. And why carry on about a harmless carpet python when we have coastal taipans, eastern browns and death adders. Probably all in our backyards already.

Best OP ever 🤣

Mr Hissy stays. Neighbour needs to wake up and grow up. How ling has she lived alongside said python without even knowing he is there?

Agree with pp about printing out the law and sending a recorded letter with a very very clear warning to stay off your property.

It's about $500 for a snake catcher to come out! We have a carpet python living downstairs which doesn't thrill me and I'd prefer they went and lived under the house or in the roof.

I had my own Mr Hissy. Not sure if he's still around. My then puppy (westie) had gone out for night time wees and wouldn't come back in. Took me getting the torch to find out little friend on the back steps. Tip when shooing snakes, don't leave your doors wide open like I did. Our little friend took the hint and went into the garden, but he could just as easily have gone the other way.

I had an absolutely enormous one (python) blocking a single lane road - so big it hung off each side😳 I didn't want to run it over, so got out of the car and poked it's tail to encourage it to move. Again, hindsight says should have closed the car door before doing so as snakey could have very well ran for the welcoming cave instead of the tree.

Then I came home to the little one on the tiles. Gave it a couple of pokes with the broom thinking it was dead - it wasn't. Called a snake catcher to come and get it as I don't like to hurt snakes. Whilst it's brown it had a pointy head, so wasn't likely to be a venomous brown snake. Snake catcher was super excited as it was actually a legless lizard and he hadn't seen one in person before. The giveaway was it had ears and a lizard tongue. In my defence, I didn't ask it to blow raspberries and, well, it wasn't like it had Mickey mouse ears...

This is super cool - Mr Hissy stays.

But it’s threads like these when I’m grateful that I live where the air hurts my face.

Team Mr Hissy here...

I'd pop round the info on pythons and their status and make it extra clear under no circumstances are they to come onto your property and mess with snakes, nor send anyone else to do so. I'd also ensure theres cameras covering the property so you can see if anyone ignores that!

Whilst having mr hissy removed seems the tactful option, the reality is, his vacancy will be filled by the next homeless and hungry hisser, it will achieve nothing and next time she sees one she is STILL going to blame you as you're now a known snake harbourer...

She'd be better off learning how to minimise snakes on her property and get her phobia sorted but thats entirely up to her to do!

So you’re saying she had a <cough> hissy fit??! (Sorry, couldn’t resist)

She’s ridiculous. What kind of person moves to a tropical region and then gets scared there might be snakes?? That’s literally why people DON’T move to tropical regions. Also, she’s an idiot. Does she think there’s only one snake in the whole region?

I’m not very neighborly so I’d just laugh and ignore. You’ve had some friendlier suggestions from other posters.

Extra points for the best "neighbour issue" ever... "I see your parking places and basketballs but I'll raise you a python"

The main issue is if Cousin comes around behind your back so I would make it very clear they are protected creatures and Mr Hissy stays. But if it starts escalating then a compromise is a registered wildlife remover just to make sure Mr Hissy stays safe.

Coincidentally just saw this about another Australian icon, the Huntsman
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/oz7s6ZtLFVuV7Dwp/?mibextid=oFDknk

Bahahaha fellow Aussie here, we have Miss Slytherin under our place. On a cold wet day he sometimes pops into the laundry to hang out on the nice warm clothes dryer 😆😆😆
Mr Hissy should absolutely. Empathy to your neighbours as phobias suck, but unfortunately snakes are a fact of life and she'd be far safer learning how to identify & respond to the actual snake in front of her.

Keep Mr Hissy. I don’t like snakes, I’m in the uk in adder country, but you’ve got one who deals with rats etc.

As someone from the UK who’s terrified of snakes, this thread is eye opening! You are all so chill about your resident snakes!

Crikey, this is why I never want to visit Australia! I'm sure it's a smashing country and all that, but nope, not keen on all those creatures. However, your neighbour needs to move. Mr Hissy isn't hurting anyone!

As someone upthread said, phobias are illogical, but it's not Mr Hissy's fault she's scared of him. She should get help.

I can't imagine choosing to live somewhere that has so many 'interesting' species. You sound like a very cool person OP.

I probably live in the same country. The air hurts my face but also burns it. We have rattlesnakes and black widow spiders.

I want to stress that this video is not of Mr Hissy. It is however a carpet python, significantly bigger than Mr Hissy. Video went viral a few years and is hilarious- must have sound turned on for running commentary. Never has “your quiche is going cold” been said at a more inappropriate time.

www.tiktok.com/@ninecomau/video/7272587598076316929?lang=en

@CottonCandyLand I have bears (brown, black and polar), cougars and lynx.

And you don’t want to mess with Moose or Elk at high speed.

@MrHissyLives that’s impressive!

But who eats warm quiche on a hot day?

If Queenslanders had to wait for a cold day to eat quiche, we would never have it.

I’m a Queenslander too with a resident carpet python, named fluffy.

But not sure what you’re on about it not being cold enough in Qld. It’s freezing at the moment! Bring on summer!

Mr Hissy stays and your neighbour (who lives in the most ridiculous place for someone terrified of snakes) moves!

I’m terrified of spiders, but I accepted there was a large chance I’d see them and have to just be okay with it when I lived in Australia and Central America.

Team Mr Hissy stays . I am in the UK so don't encounter snakes in the wild here , though there are some .

I think if your neighbour escalates it you could say he has been removed by a professional, it's unlikely she will see him again if she has only seen him once in 3 yrs .

Or if you are feeling kind , get her a book / video on snakes so she can learn which ones are the ones to give a wide birth. And which ones are good for eating rats / mice ect .

That video is a monster snake !