KHALEEJ TIMES (Dubai, UAE) 19 September 06 ‘Snake poison’ is a protein for Samih Mustafa (Habib Shaikh)
Jeddah: Poison is a valuable protein if it does not reach a person's blood, according to a man who has for the last 10 years handled poisonous snakes and scorpions and drank their venom.
Samih Mustafa, 29, told newsmen after a breathtaking show at Taif's Luna Park recently that swallowing snake poison can only harm those with stomach ulcers, wounds or people with colon problems.
During the show, he drank its poison and then ate the scorpion itself. He said that the handling of snakes and other lethally poisonous creatures started out as a strange hobby but now has become his livelihood. “Snakes do not attack people unless they are provoked. They fear us more than we fear them," Mustafa said.
According to him, there are three kinds of poisonous snakes, classified by the way their poison affects the human body. “The first kind affects a man's nervous system. The cobra belongs to this category. The second can influence the function of the heart and lungs. The most dangerous hits both systems to which the black snake belongs,” he explained.
Snakes do not fly as some people seem to think but some can jump nearly 15 metres. “Some snakes are from three to four metres long, and this can allow them to leap from higher places to lower points. But they do not fly,” Mustafa said.
“Allah created everything with a reason,” he said, and added that while many people fear snakes, they are very important to the environment. “People run away from these reptiles because of their size and the way they move,” Mustafa said.
Some people, however, keep snakes as pets. Prices vary according to the size of the reptile and what it needs to eat. Some snakes eat rabbits and birds, and some can remain alive for nearly a month without food.
The Python costs up to SR15,000 because it is one of the biggest snakes. It kills its prey by circling and constricting it, so people handling such snakes must be careful. They average about two metres in length, but the shorter they are, the thicker they become, and here lies their strength,” he said.
A poisonous snake, or pit viper, can be recognised by its triangle-shaped head, oval eyes and the fangs protruding from the upper jaw.
Mustafa said that snakes are either soft or harsh to the touch, depending on where they live. He also warned people that snakes can be found just about anywhere, especially if they have left their dens and are searching for water.
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