Ban Khok Sa-Nga... Like these pets?

Imagine a snake slithering across the road.

It moves smoothly across the road and

into your front yard.

It slithers under your steps and out of sight.

Imagine it’s a cobra...

A king cobra...

I stumbled across this video when I was

teaching all things Thai.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsi7Yq1Eb_4

It’s about King Cobra Village.

The village is Ban Khok Sa-Nga, in the North-East of Thailand. I shudder at the thought of it being in my old stomping grounds. Then, I learn that the village is near Khon Kaen – definitely my old stomping grounds! I can’t believe I was so close to so many King Cobras!

Every home in the village keeps the cobras….

In a box… under their house!

This seemingly crazy hobby started with a doctor. Doctor Phu Yai Ken Yongla. He was a herbal doctor, who thought fighting snakes would attract people (and money) to their village. Initially, he used cobras… but… they can spit over two metres and the venom can send a person blind! This was too risky, so he changed snakes and so began the King Cobra Village.

Bowatong Boonpengyootin is a local man. He plays with King Cobras. During his ten years of snake wrestling, he has been bitten four times, though only once seriously. Can you believe it? Only one bite was serious... could there be any other type of King Cobra bite? Luckily, Bowatong makes sure that he takes his daily fill of a precious, life-saving herbal medicine. The medicine helps to protect the villagers from the snake venom. They wash in it, eat it and drink it. Once bitten, they mix it with lemon and hold it on the wound. If I was bitten by a King Cobra, I might only have 15 minutes before my body started to shut down. If I had digested the magic herbs every day, I might have a fever for a few days and then be up and fighting more cobras before the end of the week!

For three men last year, the herbs were not enough.

So, I learned some things about the King Cobra. At five and a half meters long, they are the longest venomous snake in the world. Also, they will rise up to a third of their length as they move forward to attack their prey. I now know that they make a hiss which sounds like a growling dog. Nothing about them seems very friendly!

One good thing… although their venom is so toxic it could kill me in fifteen minutes, an elephant in three hours, or… if needed, 20 people at once… there is also some good to their venom. I hear your scepticism! Synthetic cobra venom is used in pain relievers and in arthritis medication. There is some good.

Even knowing this, I will take advantage of the shy nature of the snake and never corner it. I don’t fancy my chances of boxing a King Cobra and walking away afterwards!

http://sites.google.com/site/ronmcmillan/kingcobras

http://sites.google.com/site/ronmcmillan/kingcobras

another posting about the village – worth a look, even if it’s just for the photograph of “Buffalo”.

http://www.thailandbuddy.com/travel/province/Khon-Kaen/King-Cobras-Village.html