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A platypus stray by a roadside in Australia stabbed a woman with its venomous spur when she undertake to lift it from a gutter .

Jenny Forward was drive home in Tasmania when she spotted what she call up was an injured platypus on the roadside . She attempted to interpose , but when she picked up the semi - aquatic critter , she felt two spikes dig into either side of her correct hand . These capitulum released venom into the wounds , leaving her in torment , ABC Newsreported .

Close-up of a platypus swimming in the water

The woman was spurred as she tried to pick up a platypus on the roadside.

" It was as though someone had stabbed [ my script ] with a knife , " Forward severalise the news electronic web . " The pain was excruciating … definitely worse than childbirth , " she sound out .

After quickly removing the platypus ' spur from her flesh , Forward drive to the infirmary , where doctors hand her antibiotics and nuisance relief . They then conducted pinch operation to clean and stitch up her wounds . A week after treatment , Forward was still in pain and had flushed swelling on her hand , ABC News reported .

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Close-up image of the spurs on the back leg of a male platypus

Male platypuses have spurs on their back legs, pictured above, that are linked to glands that produce venom.

Platypuses ( Ornithorhynchus anatinus ) are among theweirdest mammal in the world , looking like a strange cross between a beaver , an otter and a duck’s egg . They be both on land and in water and are witness only in Australia . Male duck-billed platypus have empty urging on their back legs linked to glands that produce a cleared , sticky venom . The animals ' venom production peaks during their mating season , which normally set out towards the remainder of winter , so scientist retrieve it ’s a weapon that ’s unremarkably used to compete with other male person for access to females , according to theAustralian Platypus Conservancy(APC ) .

Platypus maliciousness is not life-time - threatening to mankind or other duck-billed platypus , but it can causeintense pain and swellingin the part of the body where someone is spurred . bailiwick on platypus venom are limited , but enquiry suggests it contains amixture of lowly proteins , such asHeptapeptide 1 , which targets thenervous system , and an enzyme called amine oxidase that may trigger cell destruction and tissue paper swelling .

There is no approved antivenom , butnerve - embarrass drugs , such as bupivacaine , can be used to minimize the pain from a duckbill spurring you , the APC said in aFacebook postaddressing the womanhood ’s late stabbing .

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People may strike that if they see a duckbilled platypus on land or near a drain that they are in peril when this may not always be the fount , Greg Irons , theater director of the Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary in Brighton , Australia , told ABC News . " Platypus will travel fairly long length on land and they also expend drains as highways , " he said .

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If someone check a Ornithorhynchus anatinus in the wild and they ’re unsure of whether it needs avail , Irons commend taking a video or photo of the animal and share it with a wildlife rescuer . If it looks obviously injured , then you could also place a tub over it to protect it while you wait for helper , he said .

On Facebook , the APC noted that virile platypuses are rarely aggressive if handled right . Rather than placing a handwriting under the brute , trained animal caretaker would lift the platypus from the middle or end of its tail to avoid the spurs .

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