Could you put something along those lines around the screws ?
You could either take the panel off and slide a length of something like this over the screws, or you could slice it lengthwise and wrap it around the screws..
If you could find something that was just wide enough so that there is no more gap between the screw and the housing, the snake couldn't squeeze in between at all, and also not get cut up because its smooth..
http://www.dudadiesel.com/choose_ite...FUe5wAodeDsH1w
https://www.lowes.com/pl/Pipe-insula...ing/4294765361