Hot snakes handling

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JONNY CICHLA;4724095; said:
Its right in whot you said about venomous snakes not being able to escape eney better than normal snakes! But its if they do escape where the problem lies!! Thats wy hots should be kept in the right way!! Dedicated separate room" with just your equipment for working with the snakes and secure cages! locked and with the names of each snake liveing in that cages written clearly on the cage! and emergency numbers to contact if eneything does sadly happen!
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My point was really, if you have ANY snake escape you have improperly housed that individual snake. I think the last snake I had escape was when I was in my early teens, roughly 20 years ago.

Honestly, I hope you guys keeping elapids and other highly venomous species have backup when working them? I'm sure that it might not be that realistic to always have someone there in case of an accident. Just something to think about now rather than when you can't breath or going into anaphylactic shock.
 
I understand where David is coming from, BUT, I would have a python escaping, any day, over a fast Elapid.

Killing that python would not be an option. Killing that Elapid, as a last resort, would.

And it was not an issue of cage unsafety I was thinking about. I was reasoning along the lines of a bad handling move..
 
All of my hots are in my bedroom. I have a weather strip on the bottom of the door, and screening over the vents to prevent any escaped hots from being able to get out of my room. I also have sealed the gaps between the sliding glass doors with one side of velcro and double screened all of my hot enclosures. I also keep a data card that tells the species, how many there are in the cage, the antivenin needed, where to get it, and any information I need to know about the snake.

When I am going anything other than routine maintenance, (feeding or spot cleaning which don't require me to take the snakes out) then I do have someone else with me. Come to think of it though, I have not had my cobras out of their cage in several months. I just do everything with them in it. But for instance when I force fed them, I had some one else over to watch just in case.

This is something that I do not take lightly and I will take every precaution there is to prevent an accident.
 
another aspect that is of utmost importance, in a Venomous Snake Room, is space. You have to have space to jump back and avoid a strike, should it occur.

Many a "famous " Hot Room has no escape space whatsoever, with the unfortunate keeper being caught in tight confines, and bashing against the cages in his back, in cases of a strike.

If this is not particularly a pre-requisite with many of the many lazy Viperids ( there are exceptions, there are a lot of very dangerous exceptions! ), with Elapids it is, definitely, a must.

I have seen people handling Taipans, or Kings, longer in body than the space the keeper has at its disposition.

And that is a recipe for disaster.
 
snakeguy101;4722549; said:
I think he means that the snake can shoot up your arm and that it is better to have it shoot up a hook than you.
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exactly
 
if it can shoot up a hook it can shoot up your hand (my logic and if its wrong it really doesnt matter it would just keep it safer if you use a hook that way its not on your arm)
 
Wow man...great thread!

Just my .02...the biggest issue here is the keepers responsibility to be fully focused on the task at hand. I do not currently keep hots, have in the past, may in the future, but I regularly handle them either in the field or while assisting another keeper. I do not put my hand on a hot snake unless it is needed but have no problem doing so then, I have no problem with hooking or hook assisted tailing but I personally will not tail any hot if I dont have a hook in the other hand. That is my handling preference though, nothing more...
The one thing that is always constant when I am handling a hot is that I am focused on the animal! Before starting to work them I survey my surroundings, I make sure there are no obstacles on the ground to trip over (and no other hots hiding nearby). I find it hard to believe that you could focus on taking pictures of a baby cobra while giving the animal the amount of focus and respect that is needed to ensure safety...I know for a fact that I couldn't do it.
I'm not downing anyones handling methods, just stating opinion...I approach hots by trying to figure out everything that can go wrong while the animal is out and then eliminating as many of those variables as possible...maybe overly cautious, but I'm alive and well after MANY up close and personal encounters.
 
jeosbo01;4724562; said:
Wow man...great thread!

Just my .02...the biggest issue here is the keepers responsibility to be fully focused on the task at hand. I do not currently keep hots, have in the past, may in the future, but I regularly handle them either in the field or while assisting another keeper. I do not put my hand on a hot snake unless it is needed but have no problem doing so then, I have no problem with hooking or hook assisted tailing but I personally will not tail any hot if I dont have a hook in the other hand. That is my handling preference though, nothing more...
The one thing that is always constant when I am handling a hot is that I am focused on the animal! Before starting to work them I survey my surroundings, I make sure there are no obstacles on the ground to trip over (and no other hots hiding nearby). I find it hard to believe that you could focus on taking pictures of a baby cobra while giving the animal the amount of focus and respect that is needed to ensure safety...I know for a fact that I couldn't do it.
I'm not downing anyones handling methods, just stating opinion...I approach hots by trying to figure out everything that can go wrong while the animal is out and then eliminating as many of those variables as possible...maybe overly cautious, but I'm alive and well after MANY up close and personal encounters.
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Yes i totally agree with a hook in almost 100% of the time! But me personally find very small cobras a nightmare on the hook! will not stay calm for a second! iv found by tailing them and letting half there body stay on the floor they seem alot more calm! if they start to climb up there body! i gently give my hand a quick shake to unravel the little cobras body! then lay body back on floor!
And believe me! i totally look things through with my hots first! iv kept them years and handled hundreds and only ever got tagged once! So not doing to bad my friend!
 
But u still got tagged......
 
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