Cow caught eating 4-foot python in Ranchi. Owner, vet stunned

According to the vets, cows are prone to a disease called pica which makes them do unusual things such as licking urine, eating dung and dirt. The picture is from a similar incident reported in Australia in 2020. (Image credit: @JimmyJoeYam/X)

A cow owner in Ranchi was in for a shock when he walked into the shed to find the animal chewing on a 4-foot python.

Recollecting the incident, Sanjay Singh, a resident of Daltonganj told Times of India, "The snake somehow slithered into the cow shed. When I went into the shed to feed the cow, I saw a portion of the snake's body hanging out from the mouth of the cow. I immediately pulled the snake residue out from the cow's mouth."

Singh soon approached veterinarians who also admitted that they had never come across a similar incident.

Veterinarian Abhay Kumar examined the cow and identified the snake as a non-venomous python. He added that the cow was under observation but did not show any health problems.

"Bovines have a disease called pica. Where there is an onset of pica, cows behave abnormally. they lick urine and eat dung and soil. It is because of a mineral deficiency," veterinarian Pramod Kumar, who also served in the Palamu Tiger Reserve in Ranchi, told the Times of India, before adding "I have not come across such a case so far."

In related news, visuals of a cow chomping on a python in Australia went viral in 2020, and last year, a video of a deer chomping down a snake left social media users puzzled. The clip went viral last year with most users questioning "Aren't deer herbivorous?"

A deer eating a snake

Deer are herbivores and are not naturally built for catching animals or consuming meat. Yet, when food is scarce and they lack proteins, calcium and phosphorus, they happen to eat other animals

Trey Reinhart / tre_hart]pic.twitter.com/kudU8I6hVv

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— Massimo (@Rainmaker1973) September 4, 2023

It later turned out that although their diet mainly consists of plant-based food that doesn’t require killing or hunting, that’s not all deer eat.

"While deer are generally considered herbivores, they are known to eat meat if given the opportunity. Field cameras from scientific research have confirmed that deer will sometimes eat small birds and also consume the eggs from bird nests," a report in Wildstart stated. "Deer are also known to eat the carcasses of dead animals, most commonly dead fish that drifted to shore. Other animals deer might eat include rabbits, squirrels, or frogs."

The report added that such behavior is remarkable especially because the digestive system of deer has not fully adapted to processing meat-based protein. Deer will normally exclusively eat plant-based material and fungi.

Read more: MP plans to bring in 'birth to death' policy for cows: Report