A 21-year-old woman has been declared brain-dead after falling into a coma earlier this month when she was bitten by a snake that she had bought online as a pet.
The woman, given the pseudonym Xiaofang, is from Weinan city in Shaanxi province. Her family says that on July 9th she was bitten on the index finger of her left hand by the pet snake — a many-banded krait, one of the most venomous snakes in the world.
Xiaofang immediately went to buy a band-aid to put over her wound, however, after returning home she still felt sick. She then decided to tell her family what happened. They rushed her to the local hospital.
When she arrived at the hospital, Xiaofang was conscious. Unfortunately, while she was being examined, her breathing and heartbeat suddenly stopped. After emergency treatment, she regained her heartbeat, however, she was now in a coma, unable to continue breathing without life support.
After learning that she was bitten by a many-banded krait, the doctors had to contact a hospital in Shanghai for the antivenom. The snake is not common in Shaanxi province, being native to southern China and Southeast Asia.
It wasn’t until the following evening that the antivenom finally arrived. Unfortunately, the injection did not help improve her condition. She was later declared brain-dead.
According to The Paper, Xiaofang’s family reported the incident to the police, adding that the snake was now nowhere to be found. Luckily, it was soon discovered dead near a garbage bin about 100 meters from the family’s home. The snake was confirmed to be a many-banded krait.
Xiaofang’s chat record with the online seller showed that the seller clearly stated that the snake she planned to buy was highly venomous. When asked about why she wanted to buy the snake, Xiaofang had simply replied, 「for making snake wine.」 However, her friends and family have said that she intended to keep the creature as a pet.
Police are currently investigating how Xiaofang managed to buy the snake online. The many-banded krait is an endangered species. According to Chinese law, it is illegal to sell the snake without an official license. Additionally, it also makes for an extremely bad pet due to its deadly venom.
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