Australia on alert for "Mad Snake Disease"
Date: 17-Aug-01
Country: AUSTRALIA
The alert came after two jungle pythons, held in quarantine at Sydney's Taronga Zoo since they were seized from a private property near Sydney, were found to be infected with so-called inclusion body disease.
The virus attacks a snake's nervous system and destroys brain cells. It is always fatal. Symptoms include weight loss, head tremors, convulsions and disorientation.
