Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Has anyone here built up an immunity to any type of snake venom? I've heard that it can be done by mixing snake venom and a saline solution (1/10 mixture) and injecting a few drops into the thigh. After several injections the concentration can be increased until a regular volume of venom is injected. If anyone has actually done something like this, I'd love to get more information.

Can anyone shed any light on this subject?

And before you ask, no I'm not planning on getting bit for entertainment or bragging rights. I MIGHT one day get a copperhead as my first (and only) hot. If I did that, having some resistance to the venom would be helpful.
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1.0.0 Great Plains Ratsnake
1.0.0 Corn, Lavender Aztec het for Amel
0.1.0 Black Ratsnake
0.0.1 Texas Rat (tame)
1.0.0 Broad Banded Water Snake, Hypo
1.0.0 Black Bassidor Retriever
2.1.0 Godchildren, 1 Evil, 2 possible hets

Yes, it's been done. Look up Bill Haast for one of the first recorded examples and the most famous. There is at least one person who I think still posts here who does it and may have info to share.

They mostly self-immunize for elapid bites though. With something like a copperhead bite, USUALLY the most significant effects are local to the bite site, and immunization won't help much in that respect because the venom will be much more concentrated than any antibodies you produce.

My next thought is that it sounds like more trouble/risk than it's worth for a copperhead. You would need to inject yourself regulary, and each injection carries some risk of an allergic reaction...which will kill you MUCH faster than any copperhead bite possibly could...except of course from an allergic reaction to the bite...

The only recorded copperhead fatalities that I am aware of in modern times are from allergic reactions. Get some training and be careful with your snakes and you'll probably be safer WITHOUT the injections...

Just my opinion.
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What goes up must come down...unless it exceeds escape velocity.

Here’s a read for ya. Note the extremely minute dosages used and how long it takes to build a resistance.

http://serpentoxin.com/toxicon.htm

I’m not sure about your “troll” thing in your name, but your notion of injecting a few drops shows you have a lot of research to do before you begin any such program. You will kill yourself.
The dilutions are very critical. You must understand (for an example) that if you dilute one drop with nine drops and inject the whole thing you are obviously still getting one whole drop. Your one in ten dilution is only one in ten if you use one tenth of that dilution. If you take one drop of that one-in-ten solution into nine drops of saline (or biostatic water, etc) you then have one in one hundred to the original drop, if you use one tenth of that solution. If you use the whole ten drops, that is the same as your one in ten again. If you are using a venom like mamba, you will probably kill yourself. It is easy to accidentally inject ten times more than you think. (Google “serial dilution” to learn more)
LarryF said it exactly right. For a copperhead, it is obviously not as lethal to begin with, but none of this is worth it to maintain a copperhead. It is hard to maintain sterile conditions and you could easily get a serious infection that could kill you too. I think it’s illegal to do (not sure why) and anywhere you buy syringes will state they can’t be sold for use on humans or for anything but experimenting or something like that. It is a quite ancient form of vaccinology that is fairly basic and quite proven. It is how all antivenin is produced. As far as the allergic reaction, this is also how “allergy shots” work. I find it a fascinating subject.
I personally think there are great discoveries yet to be made on how an immunity to certain venoms may provide some resistance to certain degenerative afflictions of the human nervous system. Bill Haast has been injecting himself since 1948 (he was born in 1910) and this is a quote from an article by him- “I’ve never been sick a day in my life. I’ve never been to a doctor. I’ve never had the flu, not even a cold.'’ He’s darn near a hundred years old now.

thanks for the info guys. All in all it sounds like much more trouble than it's worth.

On a side note, is there a name for those hide boxes with a door to trap hots while cleaning their cage? Does anyone make those or do people just make their own?
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1.0.0 Great Plains Ratsnake
1.0.0 Corn, Lavender Aztec het for Amel
0.1.0 Black Ratsnake
0.0.1 Texas Rat (tame)
1.0.0 Broad Banded Water Snake, Hypo
1.0.0 Black Bassador Retriever
2.1.0 Godchildren, 1 Evil, 2 possible hets