Masvingo: A Catholic Priest had Christmas to forget after a black mamba snake entered his church yard and killed his 6 dogs within seconds. The nightmare continued as the Priest went on to lose another pack of six new dogs which all died a week later after digging and eating carcasses of the dead dogs.
The incident happened at St Bhakita Mission in rural Masvingo around Christmas time.
Talking to reporters, Father Manyanye said that the 2,2 metre long beast passed through the Bhakita mission yard attracting the attention of the six dogs kept.
“On this day I arrived at the gate to the mission house as dogs barked from a distance at the snake which was moving across the yard. However, the dogs got excited when they saw me and they started taking bites at the snake’s tail.
“The black mamba which had paid little attention to the barking dogs so far, got furious and struck one dog after another, killing all the six within seconds. Some died on the spot while others died a few metres away in the bush,” said Father Manyanya.
Experts say dogs die so quickly from snake bites because not only are they probably bitten multiple times during the scuffle, but the snake is then also acting in total fear and will deliver as much venom in each bite as it possibly can, in an attempt to save its own life.
