14/10/2026
This gorgeous pup is Freddy and he has suffered a suspected snake bite while walking at Boggart Hole Clough.😔
Freddy’s condition deteriorated rapidly after what initially appeared to be a graze on his front leg, with his owner, Rebecca Webster, later being told by her vet that two puncture marks were consistent with a snake bite.😮
The injury has left the young dog facing the possibility of specialist surgery costing between £4,000 and £8,000, with vets warning that dead tissue may need to be removed from his leg.
Rebecca is now seeking answers about what could have bitten Freddy at Boggart Hole Clough and whether there have been any other reports of snakes or similar incidents in the area.
She is particularly concerned about the possibility of another animal, or even a child playing in the park, suffering a similar injury 💔
Freddy, who was off his lead, was running through an area of woodland and long grass when he suddenly stopped for a second or two before carrying on as normal.
At the time, his owner did not suspect anything was wrong. However, that evening he became more cuddly than usual, and by the following morning his front leg had swollen and he was limping.
His condition quickly worsened and his entire leg swelled up and he stopped eating. By the following morning, the wound was oozing what his owner described as bloody pus, prompting her to rush him back to the vet 😢
Freddy was admitted and sedated so the wound could be cleaned and examined more closely. Later that afternoon, Rebecca received a phone call that left her stunned.
She said: "I got a phone call that afternoon and it was like, 'It looks like he's been bitten by a snake'.
“There were two clear fang marks, puncture wounds in his front left leg. I was like, 'What? A snake in Manchester? Come on'. You'd never expect it."
She said: "I just don't understand what kind of snake could have done it. Was it an exotic one that had escaped or been released? You just don't know, do you?"
The ordeal has been made even more difficult by the devastating news that Phoebe, Rebecca’s other dog, was diagnosed with terminal lymphoma just days before Freddy's suspected bite💔
Such awful news 😔