A two-year-old bit a snake to death in Turkey last week after she was struck first. 

Newsweek reports the toddler was in her backyard on August 10 when neighbours heard her screaming. They found the child with a 20-inch snake clenched between her teeth.

After a bite mark was found on the girl’s lip, she was rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment and observation.

“Our neighbours have told me that the snake was in the hand of my child, she was playing with it and then it bit her,” said Mehmet Ercan, the toddler’s father. “Then she bit the snake back as a reaction.” Ercan was away at work when the incident occurred. 

The type of the snake is currently unknown, but the toddler’s father revealed she appears to be doing well.

There was some concern since 12 of the 45 species found in Turkey are considered venomous.