An animal rescuer was bitten by a snake as he attempted to remove the reptile from a family's home in Bhubaneswar, Odisha.

Rajesh Sutar was called to the house after the family spotted the non-venomous checkered keelback snake hiding in their bathroom.

The aggressive snake bit Sutar on his fingers with its inwardly-curved teeth as he attempted to control the reptile.

Without losing his nerve, Sutar calmly asked the house owner to insert a thin stick into the snake mouth and gently ease its grip. The trick worked and Sutar was able to free his fingers.

He later sought medical assistance where four broken teeth were recovered from his two fingers.

A family in Bhubaneswar in eastern India saw a snake in their house and made an emergency call to Snake Helpline on August 4.

A volunteer, Rajesh Sutar, went to the house and found a Checkered keelback snake hiding in the bathroom. After the capture, the keelback snake, though non-venomous, turned aggressive and started attacking him.

When Rajesh tried to fend it off, it bit him on two fingers and latched on to it. Wincing in pain, he tried to free his bleeding fingers, but found that the snake had found a firm grip with its inwardly-curved teeth and was refusing to let go.

Without losing his nerve, Rajesh calmly asked the house owner to insert a thin stick into the snake mouth and gently ease its grip. The trick worked and Rajesh was able to free his fingers.

He later sought medical assistance where four broken teeth were recovered from his two fingers.

General Secretary of Snake Helpline Subhendu Mallik said: "Rajesh kept remarkably cool throughout. If he had panicked and used force, he would surely have aggravated his injury and torn the snake's mouth as well.”

Checkered keel back snakes kill their prey by constriction but use their nearly 100 sharp teeth to hold the prey.