Reptile & Amphibian Forums

first off let me say it is illegal for me to own any venemous here in ny and am asking out of pure curiosity.
i would love to own a gila at some point in my life but right now i am not financially or legally able to own one.
so my ? is this if one were to bite you and release right away what would happen?

also if one were to bite you and chew until you were able to get it to release what would happen to you?

thanks for your responses and please keep the flaming to a minimum i have tried a search and come up with no real good answers
adam jeffery
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"CARLOS MENCIA FOR EL PRESIDENTE"
hybrid breeders association
1.1 puebladurans
1.1 sinacorns
1.1 hypo corns
1.1 crimson corns
1.1 striped ghosts
1.1 kenyan sand boas
1.1 mbk
1.1 albino corns
1.2 pueblacorns (females are albino)
1.1 childrens python
1.3 ghost corns
2.2 butter(both females motley)
2.2 pyroxgreerixruthvenixcampbellixholbrooki
0.1 pyroxgreerixruthvenixcampbellixholbrooki
1.0 snow corns
1.0 jurassic milk
1.0 house snake
0.1 anery pueblacorn
0.1 bloodred
0.1 striped albino corn
0.1 albino nelsons
0.1 anery motley
0.1 normal corn het hypo,anery
0.1 hypo tang hondo
0.1 rosy boa

The only fatalities I have heard of involved alcohol. If you get to the point where it is legal & affordable, they really are not that hard to work with. They love to eat raw egg. DO NOT feed them raw egg. There is not much in this world that is more offensive to the olfactory glands than egg that has been recycled through a heloderm.

~~Greg~~

I've talked to three people who were bitten by gilas. The bite is not considered to be life-threatening, but all that were bitten said that you will WISH that you were dead because the pain is so intense. Gilas do not bite and release, according to these guys, and they had to pry them off of their hands. As Greg said, gilas are very tough animals that are very easy to keep, and they are very pretty slow moving. It takes either complacency or surprise to get bitten by one.

>>...and they are very pretty slow moving. It takes either complacency or surprise to get bitten by one.

Ummm... Maybe you meant to say that they are "USUALLY pretty slow moving"? Although they can't strike, it's the same problem as with a gaboon. MOST OF THE TIME, they move very slowly and deliberately and it may look like that's all they can do, but if you startle one, watch out! They can whip their heads up or to the side very quickly.

Also, if you place one on the floor and it gets the idea that it might be able to get away it'll give you a run for your money. I've also had one "jump" and lift it's front feet a few inches off the ground to snap at me while I was trying to round it up...

But yes, if you are morking in a closed room and are careful about where you put your hands, you can easily work with them safely and they are easy to care for. Just don't let the slow movements fool you...
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What goes up must come down...unless it exceeds escape velocity.

>>The only fatalities I have heard of involved alcohol.

True.... but a lot of copperhead bites also involve alcohol, and yet out of the tens or hundreds of thousands of copperhead bites accumulated by the US population over the decades and centuries, practically none have proved fatal, whereas several out of a mere handful of Gila bites did..... Probably not enough for serious statistics, but definitely something to think about...

Cheers,

WW
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WW Home

ive loved gilas ever since i was 9 years old, their was a local pet store when i was younger that had a pair that would always lay eggs in the cage and the guys would always let me sit and watch them remove the eggs and get them set up. back before 2004-5 i believe we could get licensed to own hots but after that its almost impossible. when i sell my house and move across the border to pa i will probally get a pair i just love them to death. thank you for all of the responses.
adam jeffery
-----
"CARLOS MENCIA FOR EL PRESIDENTE"
hybrid breeders association
1.1 puebladurans
1.1 sinacorns
1.1 hypo corns
1.1 crimson corns
1.1 striped ghosts
1.1 kenyan sand boas
1.1 mbk
1.1 albino corns
1.2 pueblacorns (females are albino)
1.1 childrens python
1.3 ghost corns
2.2 butter(both females motley)
2.2 pyroxgreerixruthvenixcampbellixholbrooki
0.1 pyroxgreerixruthvenixcampbellixholbrooki
1.0 snow corns
1.0 jurassic milk
1.0 house snake
0.1 anery pueblacorn
0.1 bloodred
0.1 striped albino corn
0.1 albino nelsons
0.1 anery motley
0.1 normal corn het hypo,anery
0.1 hypo tang hondo
0.1 rosy boa

They are amazing animals to work with. As mentioned they can move surprisingly faster then expected. I've seen this more with juviniles but adults can also get up and go if given the room.
They will also do the turn and bite move but it takes either a neonate or just a very aggitated or surprised one to bite (they are still venomous though, and should be treated as such).
A few other misconceptions is that they don't like or need alot of water or humidity. They absoloutly love soaking in their water bowls or a humid hide box. They are also relativly good climbers. I wish I'd have had my camera ready the day I walked in my herp room and an adult gila was hanging upside down from it's light fixture.
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Northshore Reptiles, LLC

ive honestly been kicking the idea around for a while but here in ny the legislation on venemous is still up in the air. you can for now get a temporary lisence but it does not guarentee you will ge a perminent one when all the decisions are made concerning the new laws. as well my wife said no to any and all venemous and larger animals butwe all no how much that counts for.
maybe at a later point it will be more feasible.
adam jeffery
-----
"CARLOS MENCIA FOR EL PRESIDENTE"
hybrid breeders association
1.1 puebladurans
1.1 sinacorns
1.1 hypo corns
1.1 crimson corns
1.1 striped ghosts
1.1 kenyan sand boas
1.1 mbk
1.1 albino corns
1.2 pueblacorns (females are albino)
1.1 childrens python
1.3 ghost corns
2.2 butter(both females motley)
2.2 pyroxgreerixruthvenixcampbellixholbrooki
0.1 pyroxgreerixruthvenixcampbellixholbrooki
1.0 snow corns
1.0 jurassic milk
1.0 house snake
0.1 anery pueblacorn
0.1 bloodred
0.1 striped albino corn
0.1 albino nelsons
0.1 anery motley
0.1 normal corn het hypo,anery
0.1 hypo tang hondo
0.1 rosy boa