Snake Charmer Quits After 24th Snake Bite

[matcom]

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IT was the last fang for Malaysian snake-charmer Bidin Mat Hashim when a cobra bit him in front of a Korean television crew. After 24 snakebites in a 50-year career, he's calling it quits.

Bidin, who has been handling snakes since the age of 15 and appeared regularly on television, told the New Straits Times: "I have given serious thought to it and have decided to stop, once and for all."

Bidin, who has been hospitalised several times and required intensive care twice, did not explain why the 24th bite was worse than the others beyond saying: "It was quite painful. And I was having difficulty in breathing."

He had been handling three cobras for a Korean documentary when one bit his right knee.

Apart from his wife and nine children who have urged him to quit for years, Malaysia's snake population may also be relieved by Bidin's retirement - he says he has caught more than 20,000 of the reptiles over the years.

http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,11340674%255E13762,00.html