552,346 views
The Habu snake is very venomous, its bite causes severe pain and leads to death, and it is found in abundance in some areas of Japan. In 1980, about 400 people were bitten by it. At that time, there was no medicine to treat those affected by the venom, and when they discovered the medicine, another problem arose: how to deliver the medicine to them. The medicine came in liquid form, which meant that it could not be stored in rural areas that lacked electricity or proper storage conditions. These rural areas were where the bites most often occurred. The problem was that if they wanted to extend power lines to these areas, it would have been very time-consuming and expensive. Developing a new antidote? Same problem, plus its success is not guaranteed. After much research, Japan eventually came up with a radical solution to this problem: bringing in an animal that eats snakes and is immune to their venom. This idea seemed very appropriate at the time. But as often happens, things did not go as planned.