The Reptile Bloke

14/02/2025

What a stunning little Diamond Python! They really are beautiful. Not a mean bone in their body either.

11/02/2025

This Golden Crowned Snake (Cacophis squamulosus) was hiding under a garbage bin yesterday in the lower Blue Mountains. It’s not uncommon for snakes to be found sheltering under the council garbage bins as there is a gap between the ground and the base which the snake can access from the back of the bin. Always be mindful on bin night when putting your bin out that a snake may be sheltering underneath.

09/02/2025

A lot of times when I remove snakes from people’s homes, the people want me to take the snake as far away as possible. “Take it as far away as you can” they say.
In all honesty, I take it as far away as is necessary, with the community’s safety and the snake’s welfare both in mind. It’s actually been known for quite some time that snakes typically don’t fare well when moved out of their home range, and this is something I keep very much in mind when I do what I do. Therefore snakes I release are put in the nearest suitable place to the initial capture site that I can find.
Most people just want the snake gone, and that’s ok, but the snake’s welfare is really important to be aware of as well.

Hundreds of snakes are moved from backyards, inside homes and other urban areas into reserves and bushland around Canberra each year — but until now, little has been known about what happens to snakes after they’re released.

04/02/2025

HAPPY 20th BIRTHDAY to my big boy, “Stevo”.

Stevo is a Centralian Carpet Python otherwise known as a Bredl’s Python (Morelia bredli).

Stevo hatched on the 5/2/2005 and I originally bought him as a yearling, shortly after Steve Irwin Passed away in 2006. Of course I named him in Steve’s honour and I still have Stevo to this day. Over the years he has fathered many babies of which I have kept a couple.

Many people won’t understand having a python as a pet, but there’s something truly amazing about these creatures, and after having Stevo with me for so long he’s more like family than just a pet.

I hope you’ll join me in wishing Stevo a big happy 20th birthday. 🎁 🎂🎈

31/01/2025

I have a HUGE but SMALL favour to ask!! 🫶

⬇️ If you could all go to my business page ⬇️
“The Reptile Bloke”

Once on my business page, go to the 3 little dots on the side of page, hit "invite friends"
Select "invite all" & done.
—You've SUCCESSFULLY supported my small business for $0.00 & less than 30 seconds of your time!—
Thank YOU for supporting a small & local business! I appreciate it SO MUCH! 😻🐍🐶🦎

28/01/2025

Did You Know?

It is commonly thought that snakes love the heat and the hotter the better, but actually even snakes don’t really like it when it starts to get very hot during the day.

Snakes love to bask in the sun. They do this so they can bring their body up to its optimal temperature. What many people might be surprised to learn though is once the snake reaches its preferred body temperature it will be wanting to seek shelter or shade so that it doesn’t continue to heat up and ultimately overheat.

As ectotherms snakes will move between sunny places and shady places, or warmer places and cooler places in order to regulate their body temperature.

On really hot days, such as what we have had here in recent days, snakes will not be seen basking, but they may be found hiding out in a shady place or taking a dip in a pond or pool or taking cover wherever they can to keep cool, just like you and I would do.

Take care.
Troy.

26/01/2025

I was thinking, back in the day we had all these great Aussie blokes.
Is there anyone I’ve forgotten?
Who did you love watching?
We’ve got:
Jack Absolom
Harry Butler
Rob Bredl
Steve Irwin
The Leland Brothers
Malcolm Douglas
Les Hiddens

25/01/2025

Happy Australia Day to all my mates - Human and reptilian.
I hope you get to have a BBQ with some of your mates today.

25/01/2025

🇦🇺 Happy Australia Day 🇦🇺

24/01/2025

Happy Anniversary “The Reptile Bloke”.

Today marks eight years since my wife and I began “The Reptile Bloke”.

It’s a great privilege to be able to serve our beautiful community in the small way that we do. It’s all about helping people and reptiles alike to live safely with one another.

Thank you to everyone who has supported us in various ways. It’s my hope that I have been of some benefit to you over the past eight years and I hope to continue to do so for many more to come.

Take care.
Troy.

24/01/2025

Do you live in The Blue Mountains, Penrith or surrounding areas?
If yes, then you need to save my number in your phone now. 0404 109 421

Summer time means SNAKES ARE ABOUT and you might happen to find one in or around your home.

My name is Troy and I am your local professional snake catcher.

In 2017 my Wife and I began our business “The Reptile Bloke” to serve the people of Blue Mountains, Penrith and surrounding areas with the relocation of snakes which have found their way into both commercial and residential properties.

I would love it if you’d give me a follow on Facebook and/or Instagram, and once again save my number in your phone just in case you ever need it: 0404 109 421

Please DO NOT attempt to catch or kill any Australian native snake. Leave it to the professionals.

Call:
“The Reptile Bloke” - Troy Hovenden
Licensed Snake Catcher
0404 109 421
www.thereptilebloke.com.au

THE REPTILE BLOKE (Troy Hovenden) is a fully licensed and insured SNAKE CATCHER. Servicing The Blue

24/01/2025

Diamond Pythons love hanging out in chook pens. This one was coiled up inside the lay box feeling very contented. However he couldn’t stay there, so was relocated to nearby habitat instead.
Generally speaking Diamond Pythons are attracted to chook pens not because they want to eat the chooks, but they will happily eat the rats and mice that also hang around there. Also, like this one is doing here, lay boxes provide a very comfortable and convenient place to shelter and rest.

23/01/2025

There’s always room for more “big things” in Australia. A big Eastern Brown Snake sounds great to me. 👍

21/01/2025

Wouldn’t it be awesome if somebody found one of these bouncing around somewhere.

The Bathurst grassland earless dragon is one of the most critically endangered reptiles in the world! The last confirmed sighting occurred in the late 1990s, less than 10km south of Bathurst town centre.

Scientists are hopeful that it can be found, which would unlock emergency intervention funding for conservation to help safeguard it from extinction.

If you live in or around Bathurst, Oberon or Blayney, join the Search for the Bathurst grassland earless dragon and help to save it from extinction!

If you think you may have potential habitat for the Bathurst grassland earless dragon, Saving our Species (in partnership with the Grassland Earless Dragon Alliance) would love to hear from you. You can register your interest in hosting dragon surveys at this link by 31 January 2025.

If dragons are found on your property, it means that you are doing an excellent job of managing the habitat and you won't need to do anything differently.

Find out more at www2.environment.nsw.gov.au/news/one-australias-rarest-reptiles-needs-landowners-help.

NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water

18/01/2025

I just really love snakes…
Like and share if you do too.

18/01/2025

Two separate call outs,
same day,
both Death Adders,
one red,
one grey,
same street, 16 houses apart.

18/01/2025

Stef, This is too funny. I watched this like a dozen times.
Go give Wild Woofers Snake Catching, Pet Sitting and Dog Walking a follow.

16/01/2025

Well done to Stef who runs Wild Woofers Snake Catching, and Bridget who is one half of The Wildlife Twins.
Stef and Bridget are just two incredible female snake professionals in the industry. I could name a whole bunch more. There’s Brookey Michelle Harrison from Harrison's Gold Coast and Brisbane Snake Catcher, and Tessa From Tessa’s Reptile Services and Dimity Maxfield from Snake Rescue Sunny Coast as well as Sarah Mailey from I'll Catch It Snake Relocations just to name a few amazing ladies that I have had the pleasure of getting to know.

Snake catching isn’t just a job for men, but a heap of women are involved too and they do a brilliant job.
Negative comments from any bloke towards these women are just projecting their own insecurities because they can’t handle that a woman might be braver than he is. 😜

Bridget Thomson was a broke 21-year-old when she did a reptile handling course and "fell in love" with snake catching, despite some difficult customers.