Desirée, a 45kg, southern African python, arrived at the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital in severe condition.

• Desirée, a 30-year-old, 45kg southern African python, was airlifted by helicopter to Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital after being bludgeoned over the head in North West.
• The snake, which sustained multiple skull and jaw fractures, will remain in care until she can fend for herself.
• The snake’s recovery is progressing well, and staff celebrated when she tried to bite them on day six, a sign her feisty temperament is returning.

Desirée, a 45kg, 4.3-metre-long, southern African python, had to be airlifted to the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital last month.

And after some rest and recovery, the hospital was thrilled when she tried to bite some of the staff.

While this would scare some, her temperament is a sign that she’s getting better.

The big snake, estimated to be over 20 years old, was rescued from farmlands in Zeerust in the North West, on 19 May after she was found bludgeoned over the head.

According to the co-director of the Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital, Wendy Willson, the python had multiple fractures to the head and jaw, and was almost completely unresponsive.

She said the snake was flown to Kyalami by helicopter after spending the night stabilising at a veterinary hospital.

Willson added that a snake rescuer, Jean Swartz, had been called out to remove the snake after she was spotted.

“When he got there, it looked like she had been killed,” she said, explaining that the snake had massive swelling about the head.

“Thinking she was dead, he loaded her into his bakkie, but then she moved.”

The man raced her to veterinarian Dr Natalie Fourie.

“We put her on the phone to the Johannesburg Wildlife Hospital veterinarian, Dr Jess van der Merwe, who talked her through the process of stabilising [Desirée]. Because we can’t move her without stabilising her first,” Willson said.

“The next morning, she hissed at the vet, and that was a sign that she was strong enough to move.

“Reptiles respond badly to vibrations, and we knew she would not survive the four hours [drive to the Wildlife Veterinary Hospital] if she was driven there.”

Cat Angels Refuge transported her to Rustenburg Airport. There, Sam Junker, piloting Raven II, flew her to Johannesburg.

To save precious minutes, Dan Barwick cleared a helicopter landing site on his farm just a few hundred metres from the hospital.

“So he was out there early mowing [the landing] before the chopper arrived [at midday].”

Willson said Desirée’s condition was so bad that she did not need to be sedated while they moved her, and it took around eight people to carry her.

“She was placed in a warm, dark, heated tank – because of her size, the glass had to be reinforced. She was [radiographed], where it was confirmed that she had multiple fractures. Her eyes were bulging from the swelling,” she added.

“She had been brutally beaten.”

The radiographs showed that she had suffered severe blunt force trauma, including a crushed skull, shattered jaw bones and traumatic brain swelling.

But Willson said she was now on the mend.

She added:

Willson explained that this was a sign that she was getting better.

“We named her Desirée, after a famous South African helicopter pilot, [Desirée van Rooyen], in honour of the remarkable air rescue that gave her a fighting chance” she said.

“Many people don’t realise that African rock pythons are among the few reptiles that actively care for their eggs, protecting them for weeks and even generating heat to keep them warm. As large apex predators, they play a vital role in maintaining healthy ecosystems. Losing a mature breeding female like Desirée would be a significant loss for conservation.”

Desirée is not the only big snake at the Wildlife Veterinary Hospital; another female southern African python named Ounooi was also brought in via a fixed-wing plane when a farmer near Mahikeng noticed she wasn’t looking too good.

He had been keeping an eye on the large reptile for eight years when he noticed that she was suddenly thin and lethargic.

Ounooi was admitted with sepsis.

They also have a python named Medusa and a male python, which forms part of a cruelty case.

“We are dripping in snakes,” Willson said with a chuckle.

The snakes will eventually be released once they have healed.

Willson said it was unfortunate that Desirée would likely not be returned to her old territory because of how the residents had treated her, probably out of fear. And it was unfortunate because she had clearly done very well in that environment.

“One person caused her suffering. An entire community came together to save her. Keep Desirée in your thoughts as her recovery continues,” she added.

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