Snake Bite First Aid in WA: A Step-by-Step Guide

1. Why Spring Is Snake Bite Season in Western Australia

Snakes are reptiles. They rely on outside temperatures to warm up, so they spend the cooler months sheltering and moving very little. As days lengthen and the ground warms in September and October, they become far more active. They are hungry, they are looking for mates, and they are crossing open ground where people walk, work and play.

In WA, the peak risk period generally runs from spring through to autumn. That does not mean you are safe in winter. On a warm, still winter day, a snake can still be basking on a track, a pile of tin or a sunny patch of lawn.

Bites tend to happen in a few predictable ways:

• Someone steps on or near a snake they did not see, often in long grass, leaf litter or at night.
• Someone reaches into a space they cannot see into, such as a wood pile, a shed, a hay bale or under a sheet of iron.
• Someone tries to kill, catch or move a snake. This is one of the most common causes of bites to the hand.
• A snake is disturbed during farm, station, mining, construction or garden work.

Every one of those situations is common in regional WA. That is why snake bite first aid is not a niche skill here. It is a basic life skill for anyone who lives, works or holidays outside the city, and for plenty of people inside it too.

2. The Snakes Most Likely to Bite in WA

You do not need to identify the snake to give correct first aid. The first aid is the same for every Australian snake. Still, it helps to know what you are sharing the landscape with, because it shapes where you take extra care.

Colour is a poor guide. Brown snakes can be black, grey or tan. Tiger snakes can be plain. Young snakes can look completely different from adults. Treat every snake bite as potentially dangerous, and never go near the snake to get a better look.

3. How Snake Venom Moves Through the Body

Most dangerous Australian snake venom is made up of large protein molecules. After a bite, the venom is usually deposited just under the skin. From there, much of it is carried away through the lymphatic system rather than going straight into the bloodstream.

Lymph does not have its own pump like blood does. It moves when the muscles around the lymph vessels contract. Walking, running, gripping and even wriggling a limb push lymph, and venom, toward the centre of the body.

That is the whole reason the pressure immobilisation technique works. Firm pressure squashes the lymph vessels, and keeping the limb still stops the muscles from pumping. Together, they slow the movement of venom and buy time to reach hospital.

If you want the deeper science, read our explainer on how snake venom spreads through the body and our guide to why the pressure immobilisation technique works. This article focuses on what to do, step by step, in a WA setting.

4. Signs a Snake Bite May Be Serious

Here is the part that catches people out. Many snake bites are not painful, and some leave no obvious marks. Brown snakes, including dugites and gwardars, have small fangs. A bite can feel like a scratch, a brush against a stick or nothing at all.

That means you should give first aid for any suspected bite, not just a confirmed one. If a person says they felt something, saw a snake nearby, or has unexplained scratches after working in snake country, treat it as a bite.

Symptoms may appear within minutes or may take hours. They can include:

• Headache, nausea, vomiting or abdominal pain
• Dizziness, confusion or feeling faint
• Sudden collapse, sometimes followed by a partial recovery
• Blurred or double vision, drooping eyelids
• Slurred speech or difficulty swallowing
• Weakness, heavy limbs or difficulty breathing
• Bleeding from the bite site, gums or small cuts that will not stop
• Dark or red urine
• Pain, swelling or bruising at the bite site

ANZCOR notes that the most common cause of death after Australian snake bite is sudden collapse and cardiac arrest, often within 10 to 60 minutes of the bite. That is why the person must never be left alone and why you need to be ready to start CPR.

5. Snake Bite First Aid: The Step-by-Step Plan

Use this sequence. It follows DRSABCD and the ANZCOR snake bite guideline, adapted for the way things really happen in WA homes, farms and worksites.

1. Check for danger. Move yourself and the person away from the snake if you can do it safely, even just a few metres. Do not try to catch or kill it. If you can safely take a photo from a distance, fine, but it is not needed.
2. Keep the person still and calm. Help them lie down right where they are. Tell them clearly that keeping still is part of the treatment. Reassure them. Panic makes people want to move.
3. Call 000. Say it is a snake bite and give a precise location. If you are on speaker, keep working while you talk. Send someone else to meet the ambulance if possible.
4. Apply a pressure bandage over the bite. Use a broad elastic bandage, 10 to 15 cm wide if you have one. Wrap firmly over the bite site first.
5. Bandage the whole limb. Using a second bandage, start at the fingers or toes and wrap firmly up the limb, over the first bandage, as high as you can go. Cover as much of the limb as possible.
6. Splint the limb. Use a proper splint, a rolled newspaper, a stick, a board or the other leg. The aim is to stop the joints above and below the bite from moving.
7. Mark the bite site. Use a pen to mark where the bite is on the outside of the bandage so hospital staff can find it.
8. Keep them still and monitor. Stay with them. Watch their breathing, colour and level of response. Note the time of the bite and the time the bandage went on.
9. Be ready for CPR. If the person becomes unresponsive and is not breathing normally, start CPR straight away and use an AED if one is available.

6. How to Get the Pressure Bandage Right

This is where training makes the biggest difference. A bandage that is too loose does very little. A bandage that is too tight is painful, and people are then tempted to take it off. Here is what correct looks like.

Use the right bandage

ANZCOR recommends broad elasticised bandages over crepe bandages. They hold pressure better and are easier to get right. Some snake bandages have printed rectangles that turn into squares when stretched to the right tension. These are excellent for people who do not bandage often.

If you have no bandages, use whatever you have. Strips of clothing, towels, a torn sheet or pantyhose are all better than nothing.

Get the pressure right

Aim for the firmness you would use for a sprained ankle. It should feel snug and firm, but the person should not be in severe pain, and the fingers or toes should stay warm and pink.

Check circulation after you finish. If the toes or fingers become cold, pale or blue, or the person has severe pain from the bandage, loosen the bandage slightly and re-wrap. Do not remove it.

Cover as much of the limb as possible

Once the bite site is covered, bandage from the fingertips or toes all the way up. For a leg bite, that means up to the groin area. For an arm bite, that means up to the armpit. More coverage means less room for venom to move.

Splint and immobilise

For a leg, splint along the outside of the leg, or bandage both legs together with padding between them. For an arm, splint the arm, then support it in a sling. The goal is simple: the limb should not bend at any joint.

Leave it on

Once the bandage is on, it stays on until the person is in hospital and a doctor decides to remove it. Removing it early can let a large dose of venom move into circulation quickly.

7. What If the Bite Is on the Hand, Body, Face or Neck?

Most snake bites in Australia are on the lower leg, ankle or foot. But bites to the hand are common when people try to handle or kill a snake.

Bites on the hand or forearm

Bandage over the bite, then wrap from the fingertips up the whole arm. Splint the forearm and elbow so they cannot bend, and support the arm in a sling across the chest. Remove rings, watches and bracelets before the hand swells.

Bites on the torso

If you can, apply firm pressure over the bite site with a pad and a bandage, as long as it does not restrict breathing. Keep the person completely still and lying down.

Bites on the head, face or neck

You cannot use pressure immobilisation here. Keep the person lying still, call 000 and watch their breathing closely. Be ready to start CPR.

If you are bitten and you are alone

This is the hardest situation. Call 000 or 112 first, while you still feel well, and tell them exactly where you are. Then sit or lie down and stay still. If you can reach a bandage, apply it over the bite and up the limb yourself as best you can, then keep still and wait. Do not try to walk out unless the call-taker tells you there is no other option. If you have a PLB or satellite messenger, activate it.

8. What Not to Do After a Snake Bite

9. Snake Bites and Children

Children are at higher risk of serious effects because they receive the same amount of venom in a much smaller body. They are also more likely to be bitten while exploring, climbing or reaching into places adults avoid.

Young children may not be able to tell you that they were bitten. Signs to watch for include unexplained crying after playing outside, a sudden change in behaviour, drowsiness, vomiting or collapse. If a child has been near a snake and you cannot be sure they were not bitten, treat it as a bite and call 000.

Keeping a frightened child still is hard. Get down to their level, hold them, speak calmly and keep them lying on your lap or on the ground. If you are in a childcare, school or camp setting, one adult should manage the child while another calls 000 and moves the other children away.

If you work with children, HLTAID012 Provide First Aid in an Education and Care Setting covers envenomation alongside asthma, anaphylaxis and child-specific CPR.

10. Snake Bite on a Farm, Station or Remote Worksite

In Perth, an ambulance may reach you within minutes. On a station in the Pilbara, a farm in the Wheatbelt or an exploration camp in the Goldfields, help may be an hour or several hours away. The first aid is the same, but the planning is completely different.

Communication

Know before you go how you will call for help. Check mobile coverage. Where there is none, carry a satellite phone, a personal locator beacon (PLB) or a satellite messenger. If your phone shows no coverage from your own carrier, try 000 anyway or dial 112, which can connect through any available network. The Emergency+ app shows your GPS coordinates, which is extremely useful on a property with no street address.

Evacuation

Remote sites should have a written emergency plan that covers how a casualty will be moved, where a vehicle can meet an ambulance, and when the Royal Flying Doctor Service may be involved. Never let the bitten person drive themselves. If a vehicle must be used, the person lies down, keeps the limb splinted and does not walk to the vehicle.

Extended care

Waiting a long time with a casualty is mentally and physically draining. Keep monitoring breathing and responsiveness, record observations every few minutes with times, keep the person warm or shaded, and keep reassuring them. This is exactly what remote first aid training prepares you for.

If your team works more than an hour from emergency help, see our HLTAID013 Provide First Aid in Remote or Isolated Site course.

11. Snakes Around Perth and Regional Towns

Snake bites are not only a bush problem. Dugites live comfortably alongside people in Perth's suburbs, especially near bushland, golf courses, parks and new estates where land has been cleared. Tiger snakes are common around lakes and wetlands.

Common backyard risk areas include:

• Piles of rubbish, timber, bricks or roofing iron
• Long grass and dense garden beds
• Sheds, garages and pool pump areas
• Aviaries and chook pens, which attract mice
• Water features, ponds and dripping taps in hot weather

If you see a snake at home, keep children and pets away and watch it from a safe distance. It will usually move on. If it needs to be removed, contact a licensed snake catcher. The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) Wildcare Helpline can also give advice.

Dogs are bitten often, and owners sometimes get bitten trying to separate a dog from a snake. Stay back, call your dog away if you can, and get it to a vet quickly. Never put your own hands near the snake.

12. What to Keep in a Snake Bite Kit

A standard first aid kit usually has one or two small crepe bandages. That is not enough to properly bandage an adult leg. If you live, work or travel in snake country, build a dedicated snake bite kit and keep it where you actually spend time: the ute, the tractor, the shed, the camping box and the work vehicle.

Check your kit every season. Elastic bandages can lose stretch over time, especially if stored in a hot vehicle.

13. What Happens at Hospital

Knowing what comes next helps you reassure the person and explains why every bite must be assessed, even when they feel fine.

• The bandage stays on at first. Hospital staff will usually take blood and assess the person before deciding when to remove the bandage.
• Blood tests are repeated. Doctors check for effects on clotting, muscles and kidneys. These tests are usually repeated over several hours.
• Observation takes time. Most people with a suspected snake bite are observed for at least 12 hours, even if they look well.
• Antivenom is given if needed. Not every bite needs antivenom. It is given when there are signs of envenomation. The choice of antivenom is guided by the person's symptoms, test results and where in Australia the bite happened.

This is why you do not need to catch or identify the snake. Hospitals are well set up to manage snake bite without it.

14. Common Snake Bite Myths

"If it does not hurt, it was not a dangerous snake."

False. Many serious bites from brown snakes are nearly painless.

"You need to know the snake so the hospital can choose the antivenom."

False. Hospitals use symptoms, blood tests and location. Chasing the snake causes more bites.

"A tourniquet stops the venom."

False. Tourniquets are not recommended for snake bite and can cause serious damage.

"You should wash the venom off."

False. Leave the bite as it is.

"If they feel fine after an hour, they can go home."

False. Symptoms can be delayed. Every suspected bite needs hospital assessment.

"Snakes are aggressive and chase people."

Mostly false. Snakes usually bite because they are stepped on, cornered or handled. Giving them space is the best protection.

15. How to Lower Your Risk of Being Bitten

• Wear enclosed shoes, long trousers and gaiters when walking or working in long grass or bush.
• Carry a torch at night, even around the house in warmer months.
• Look before you reach. Use a stick or tool to move iron, timber and hay.
• Keep yards tidy and grass short, and reduce the mice and rats that attract snakes.
• Leave snakes alone. Move away slowly and give them room to escape.
• Teach children to stand still, back away and tell an adult if they see a snake.
• On worksites, include snakes in toolbox talks, site inductions and emergency drills, especially in spring.

16. Walking Through a Real Scenario

It is a warm Saturday afternoon in October in the Perth Hills. Sam is clearing leaves from behind the shed when he feels a sharp scratch on his ankle. He looks down and sees a brown snake disappearing under a sheet of tin. There are two small marks and a tiny bead of blood. It barely hurts.

Sam's first instinct is to walk inside and ask his partner what to do. That is the most common mistake people make, and it is the one that matters most.

Here is what good first aid looks like instead:

• Sam calls out and sits down where he is, a few steps away from the tin. His partner, Jess, brings the first aid kit and her phone to him.
• Jess helps Sam lie flat on the grass and tells him, calmly, that keeping still is part of the treatment.
• She calls 000 on speaker and says, "My partner has been bitten by a snake on the ankle. He is conscious and breathing." She gives the full street address and mentions the side gate.
• While the call-taker talks, she wraps an elastic bandage firmly over the bite, then starts at Sam's toes and bandages up the whole leg over the top.
• She uses a broom handle as a splint along the outside of his leg and bandages it in place, then marks the bite site with a pen and writes the time on the bandage.
• She sends a neighbour to the front of the house to wave the ambulance in, and stays with Sam, watching his breathing and colour, and chatting to keep him calm.

Twenty minutes later Sam feels sick and gets a headache. Jess tells the call-taker, keeps him lying down and stays ready to start CPR. Paramedics arrive, take over and transport him with the bandage still on. At hospital, his blood tests show early effects on clotting and he receives antivenom. He goes home two days later.

Nothing Jess did was complicated. What made the difference was that she did not hesitate, she knew the order of steps, and she kept Sam still from the very first moment.

17. Snake Bite Planning for WA Workplaces

Under WA's Work Health and Safety laws, businesses must provide adequate first aid equipment, facilities and trained first aiders based on the risks of their workplace. WorkSafe WA's First Aid in the Workplace code of practice explains how to assess those risks. If your people work outdoors in WA, snakes are a foreseeable hazard and should be part of that assessment.

A practical snake bite plan for a WA workplace includes:

• Risk assessment. Where and when are workers most likely to meet snakes? Think grass cutting, fencing, pipe and drainage work, land clearing, farm work, environmental surveys and mine site rehabilitation.
• Kits in the right places. Snake bite kits in every field vehicle and machine cab, not just one in the office.
• Trained people on every crew. If crews split up across a large site, each group needs someone who can apply a pressure bandage and start CPR.
• Communication. A tested way to call for help from every part of the site, including dead spots.
• Emergency plan. Clear directions for ambulance access, meeting points, GPS coordinates and, for remote sites, evacuation options.
• Seasonal reminders. A short toolbox talk every spring about snake awareness, PPE and first aid.

Our guide to workplace emergency plans and Australian legal requirements explains how this fits into your broader duty of care.

18. Why You Need to Practise, Not Just Read

Reading this article is a great start. But bandaging a real limb firmly, evenly and quickly while someone is frightened is a physical skill. The first time you do it should not be during an emergency.

In a REACHAU course, you practise the pressure immobilisation technique on a real person, with real bandages, until you know how firm is firm enough and how to splint a limb so it will not move. You also practise CPR, because snake bite can cause sudden collapse.

Pressure immobilisation is covered in HLTAID011 Provide First Aid, HLTAID012, HLTAID013 remote first aid and HLTAID014 Provide Advanced First Aid. We deliver across Perth and regional WA, including on-site training for farms, stations and workplaces.

Frequently Asked Questions About Snake Bite First Aid in WA

Written by Britt Brennan

Empowerment-Focused First Aid Trainer and Employment Coach, and founder of REACHAU. Britt delivers accredited first aid training across Western Australia with a focus on regional risks and real-world confidence.

This article is general first aid information based on ANZCOR guidelines current at the time of writing. It does not replace a first aid course or medical advice. In an emergency, call 000.