Our New Pet

Well, my flatmate came home a week ago and said, "I've brought you a present."  Now for some reason when people say 'present' I think chocolate. However this was no chocolate.  He had in fact brought home a snake!!  I happened to mention once in passing that I still had not seen a snake in the wild since coming to the Northern Territory.  I didn't expect for him to bring a live one home as a present. "Where are we going to put it?" I said. "This aren't no puppy or kitten we can leave to run around inside." So a huge plastic storage container suddenly got holes drilled into it and, presdo, we have a temporary enclosure. Since then, the enclosure has had many additions including rocks and sand and a black plastic tube for him to hide in. Unfortunately, the real enclosure and 'cool' stuff has to be ordered online and sent, as 'would you believe it' ........no pet shops in Katherine. Grrrrrrrrr

So now we have a Childrens Python.  Named not because he eats children (though it makes for a good tale to tell the kids), nor because they make good childrens pets but rather, named after John George Children. They are also nonvenomous, in case you were thinking I was mad (or madder)!!

Anyway, we have actually all grown very fond of him and have now even named him.  Winston Python (Winny for short), named after, you guessed it, Winston Peters.  We (well I actually), thought Winston Peters is always shedding his skin yet coming back as the same old reptile, so it seemed rather fitting really.  He (the python, not the man), is currently about a metre long and as they live for 30 years, he will likely outlive NZ's Winston Peters.

We of course, don't have snakes in New Zealand so this is all a learning experience and quite exciting! 

Anyway, I took these photos a couple of nights ago with my phone, hence the quality is not great.  If you are a facebook friend of mine then you will be able to see the actual video of me outside playing with him..

Peeking out of his plastic tube. Notice him poking his tongue out at everyone!
 Just like Winston Peters a?

That tongue again, used to sniff out his prey!

Us trying to feed him a skink. Seems he did eat it after we went bed.

Excuse the quality of this photo but it's not easy holding a moving snake in one hand and the phone camera in the other. See in the shadow, his tongue is out AGAIN!

Is this Africa or Australia?

Now when you think of the Northern Territory, you tend to think lots of lizards, snakes, crocodiles, and birds. However, it seems there are many other animals living wild in the Northern Territory.  Remember this State has only 220,000 people in total living here so there are huge areas of wilderness and untouched land.

My friend and I laugh at the fact there was a feral lioness spotted loose in Darwin. Not only because this isn't Africa, but because the radio news reports said, they were checking with all the registered owners of lions in the Territory and the Army confirmed it wasn't their lion on the loose. Then they said, if you have lost a lion to contact them!!  Yes, can you believe it?  The Army has a lion, and it seems some people also have them as pets. What does the Army need a lion for? The mind boggles!! And what do you do when your cute lion cub becomes a large lion and wants to eat you?  Hmmmmmm!!

It seems any pet is the go in the Northern Territory.  Apparently, Tipperary Station - which is about 200km from Darwin was turned into an exotic wildlife sanctuary by its owner, millionaire Warren Anderson.  But in 2003 when he got sick of his sanctuary he sold his interest in the station and tried to sell the animals including rhinoceroses, hippopotamuses, giraffes, zebras and deer. People seem to suspect many of the animals he couldn't sell, he just released. Who knows?  But it does make you wonder especially when in 2009, a person shot a Pygmy Hippopotamus by mistake. The poor guy was pig hunting and thought he shot a pig so when he realised what it was he high tailed it out of there thinking it's parents can't be far behind. Then lets not forget the monkey seen by a bus load of people in 2010 in Darwin.

Hippos in the swamps, Lions & Monkeys in the desert (or City, in this case). Yet the Territorians don't seem to think it's all that weird. Could you imagine pig hunting in NZ and shooting a hippo, or driving up the Desert Road and having to stop for a lion crossing the road? Or stopping at the lights in town to see a monkey walk pass?  Unbelieveable stuff........but not for here it seems!!

So yeah, who knows what you might find over and above your snakes, lizards and crocodiles here.  I mean really, who needs to go do an African safari, just come to the Northern Territory.

Mentally impaired held in NT prison without conviction

Lateline 
By Suzanne Smith
June 26, 2012

Medical experts are appealing to the Northern Territory Government to address a law that sees mentally impaired people kept in jail indefinitely, without being convicted.

Alice Springs has an acute lack of mental health facilities, so high-needs clients end up in jail.

Four men are currently being held in the Alice Springs jail without being convicted of a crime and with no release date because they were deemed "unfit to plead".

It is a practice that has been described as tantamount to torture.


WHILE IT SAYS 'MENTALLY IMPAIRED' IN THE REPORT, IT SEEMS THEY ARE REFERRING RATHER TO PEOPLE WITH INTELLECTUAL OR CONGITIVE IMPAIRMENT. NOT SAYING THAT MAKES IT BETTER IN ANYWAY, IT'S JUST DIFFERENT TERMINOLOGY TO WHAT WE WOULD USE IN NZ.

FOR THE FULL TV NEWS CLIP, WHICH I RECOMMEND WATCHING VISIT:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-25/mentally-impaired-being-held-in-nt-prisons-without-conviction/4091940?WT.svl=news1

Inquest Continues - WE HAVE NURSES NOW

THE REASON I AM POSTING ABOUT THIS INQUEST IS IT REALLY IS WHERE MY JOB CAME FROM, AND THE OUTCOME WILL DETERMINE WEATHER THE SERVICE IS EXTENDED.

THIS LINK IS AN AUDIO NEWS PIECE ON YESTERDAY THAT IS WORTH LISTENING TO:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-21/assistant-commissioner-at-death-in-custody-inquest/4084374?section=nt


Police procedure shake-up after death in custody

By Allyson Horn
June 21, 2012 15:04:21

Alice Springs police Commander Michael Murphy said nurses have been introduced to the watch-house since the death of Mr Briscoe.

He said nurses work at the facility four nights a week to help identify when prisoners need medical help.

Commander Murphy also told the inquest of watch-house staffing changes.

There will now be a senior officer stationed there at all times.

On the night Mr Briscoe died, there were just two junior officers on duty.

Police say they have asked the Territory Government to fund the permanent stationing of nurses in all Territory watch-houses.

They say nurses are needed every hour of every day to ensure prisoner welfare.

The inquest continues.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-21/death-in-custody-police-procedures-change/4084526?section=nt

Aboriginal death in custody inquest begins

THIS DEATH HAPPENED PRIOR TO A NURSE WORKING AT THE WATCH HOUSE.  SUCH DEATHS ARE LARGELY THE REASON MY POSITION AND THAT OF THE OTHER WATCH HOUSE NURSES CAME TO BE IN THE NORTHERN TERRITORY.  I WILL BE POSTING UP-DATES AS THEY HAPPEN BUT THIS VIDEO NEWS STORY GIVES YOU SOME BACKGROUND..........

http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2012/s3523779.htm

Day 1

By Allyson Horn
Updated June 12, 2012 18:34:03

An inquest into the death of an Aboriginal man in police custody in Alice Springs has heard he may have died from suffocation.
Kwementyaye Briscoe, 28, died after being taken into protective custody in January this year for being drunk.
Mr Briscoe's family say witnesses saw police officers assaulting him in the central Australian town's watch-house before he died.
The family asked Northern Territory Chief Minister Paul Henderson for an independent investigation into his death but the request was denied.
Family and friends of the dead man packed the Alice Springs Coroner's Court for the first day of the inquest.
Some cried as the court saw security footage taken in the police watch house on the night of Mr Briscoe's death.
The footage showed Mr Briscoe was bleeding from the head but the court was told he did not receive any medical treatment.
The court heard Mr Briscoe was placed face down on a mattress in a police cell and left in an awkward position with his neck twisted against a concrete block.
The court also heard Mr Briscoe was not checked in his cell for more than two hours, which is against police procedure.
When he was checked, he was found to be unconscious and was pronounced dead a short time later.
Counsel assisting the Coroner told the court it would hear pathology evidence suggesting Mr Briscoe died from suffocation.
Today the court heard from the officer in charge of the investigation into the death, Acting Superintendent Scott Pollock.
He told the court Mr Briscoe showed signs of physical and emotional distress after being bought into custody and that Mr Briscoe should have received medical assessment.
An affidavit from a senior Northern Territory Police official was also tendered, in which the official apologises to Mr Briscoe's family for not providing adequate care.
The Coroner will hear evidence from at least 25 witnesses.

The hearing continues.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-12/briscoe-death-in-custrody-inquest-begins/4066476?section=nt



 

Don't compare apples to oranges!

Well, it was Queens Birthday weekend here in Australia this weekend, a week later than they have it in New Zealand, so we decided to visit a few places.
Yesterday we headed to the Buranga Sports and Cultural Festival which they have here every Queens Birthday weekend and it's one of the longest running Aboriginal Festivals in Australia.  It is about 80 kms south west of Katherine and the Jawoyn people open their community up to everyone so they can share and celebrate their culture.  It's a drug and alcohol free event and you're also able to camp there (tourists included) and attend all the events, including a music concert that goes half the night on Saturday, traditional dancing, story telling, spear making (and throwing competitions), bush medicine tours, market weaving, didgeridoo making & playing workshops and many other events. They have a bit of a market going also with food stalls and there is the youth inter-country (meaning, inter-community) sports competitions such as basketball, softball and Aussie rules rugby running also.

Anyway, we went on Sunday and there wasn't much going on so it was a little disappointing.  Apparently, Saturday is the day to go. I will need to remember that for next year. The atmosphere though was one of happiness and celebration. It's the first time since being in Australia that I have seen aboriginal people and white people co-habituating right alongside one another.  It truly was an awesome sight.

Then today we visited the Cutta Cutta Caves which are 27 km south of Katherine.  Now again I was disappointed but this time largely because all I could think of was our New Zealand caves and our wonderful glowworms that light the way. The limestone caves here don't have glowworms and they are pitch black when the lights are out. However, they do have snakes, lizards, various species of bats and the wonderful large mouse spider. So while these were definitely no Waitomo Caves, I was excited to go to see the wildlife.  But yet again, I did not see a single animal.  It's becoming the story of my life here.  Everyone constantly thinks snakes, spiders and crocodiles when they think of the Northern Territory, yet I am still to see any.  So all and all, if you have been to the Waitomo Caves in New Zealand, don't go to these caves as you will hugely disappointed.



People keep saying, you can't compare New Zealand to Australia as it's like comparing apples and oranges.  Well, I'm starting to see just that. In New Zealand, not only are the caves more beautiful, largely because we have glow worms and are able to explore them to a much greater extent due to not having to worry about snakes and vampire bats like they do here, but also the NZ bush is more beautiful.  It's more dense, green, and full of native trees and wildlife.  Where here in the Territory, the bush is sparse, dry and there is next to no wildlife in it unless you are near a river or billabong. You might see the odd hawk feeding on the dead wallaby, but there is a distinct lack of bird life and animal sounds. I guess it makes sense, as because it's so dry how could wildlife live in the bush without a water source close. Also the cane toads have killed off a lot of the snakes and some are now considered to be endangered as a result.

The cane toad was an introduced specie to Australia, initially just around a small area in Queensland near Cairns. It was introduced in an attempt to control the native cane beetle that was destroying sugar cane crops, which are a major source of income for Australia.  They have since spread and are now throughout a lot of the Northern Territory National Parks. As they are poisonous to eat, when snakes, goannas or birds eat them, they then die. So they are changing the ecology of Northern Australia. With less snakes & goannas for example, it means more saltwater crocodile eggs are untouched and then hatch, meaning the numbers may increase sufficiently over the next 100 years or so. Whereas the freshwater crocodile is known to eat the cane toads causing them to also die which could in turn make this crocodile endangered also. Just a side note, the poison from cane toads is known to cause an hallucinate effect for people if licked, therefore some people purposely lick cane toads for this high.  Maybe there will be a lucrative business for dealers here in the future also :)

Anyway, that was me getting a little side tracked.  The point being, even though I constantly look at Australia and think to myself, this is not as nice as New Zealand, I need to remember the ecology and climate here in the Northern Territory is vastly different from New Zealands.  On saying that, it is currently the dry season here, and winter in New Zealand.  Everyday day now here, is full of sunshine and dry weather. The days having a high of 27-31 degrees and the nights down to around 7 degrees.  So the weather is one thing I'm not wanting to exchange with New Zealand anytime soon.

Northern Territory Bush at beginning of the dry season