Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Over on the anaconda forum, I started a thread about
how to protect oneself from a large (pet) anaconda
attack. I got alot of flack for it but that's another
issue. Anyway, for those of you who own large (14 foot
plus?) retics, I was wondering if any of you have any
special tools or techniques to ensure your safety.
I've suggested things like zap guns, pepper spray,
and cold water that might fend off an attack. I think
the "AFH Guidelines on Keeping Large Serpents" is largely
unrealistic and inadequate for practical use, although
one can't argue with the suggestions in it.

And please, I've already gotten comments like:

- if you need a weapon against your anaconda, you
have no business having an anaconda
- what are you doing with an anaconda, you idiot?

Any constructive comments would be much appreciated.

P.S. One very interesting fact surfaced, almost no
one who accesses the anaconda forum has a large
anaconda ! Thanks.

The couple things I've read (which were hotly debated) were very hot water, bending the end of the tail and alcohol in their face. Haven't tried any of them myself and hopefully I'll never have to.

Alcohol - ethanol, ethyl, whiskey, vodka, the drinkable stuff, NOT isopropanol / isopropyl / rubbing will get anything - snake, turtle, fish, dog, cat, ad nauseam, etc., to letcha go pronto. The little one-shot bottles are a good size, although getting the cap off in a hurry might prove to be problematic, especially if your hands are otherwise occupied.

Mouthwashes are probably a good bet - a lot of them contain alcohol (ethanol) & most of 'em taste horrible, although I don't think snakes have a sense of taste to go along with their very acute sense of smell.

Leave the cattle prods, stun guns, & Tasers in the interrogation rooms of the cops.

Pepper sprays contain capsicum / capciacin / capsiacin & are potentially dangerous to both you & the animal.

Tail-bending / crimping also works, but requires two hands as well as access to the tail.

NEVER mess with a big snake alone - the buddy system is mandatory & be sure that your buddy won't freak out & become useless.
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Cheers & keep on crawlin',

Karl

KarlSnake
>-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>>>>>>>>>>>

HC hit most of it. I prefer to avoid the situation, but when it has arose in the past I use hot water, though not scalding blister giving by any means, usually what the average person would wash his hands good with works. Spill it on your thigh if you dont know, it should sting good but leave no marks or residual pain after the first 5 minutes. A mouth is much tougher both are and a snakes. Cheap,available, and you know what if feels like first hand. I have personally used this method for not just big snakes, but also alligators and monitors that didn't let go or were to big to tolerate the wait.
I have personally never tried the tail trick, but have heard that it works. I dont like the idea of alcohol, though I have heard it of it being used and can understand why. I would hate to inhale a mist of 100 proof. Why waste the money or liquor.By no means use isoporyl.
The best thing is to learn to read the snake. Sure accidents happen but almost always preventable. A bite that stays attached is a food response (snakes) in almost all cases. That alone should be a definitive answer to how non-release bites happen, and how to avoid the situation.
There are several of us here who keep LARGE retics (myself included), so you wont have to worry about the same situation as you encountered on the anaconda forum.
Notah

Danny,
I will be posting photos of some larger anacondas Jud and I have on the Anaconda Forum in the next day or two. Some of the photos were slides from the last year or two before I aquired my digital camera. I am having them coverted to digital format for posting. And thanks to Notah for confirming my previously posted definition of a feeding bite as opposed to a defensive strike. It appears that some people don't believe there is a difference.

Kelly

I work around a cart. On my cart, it usually has whatever I need for what I am doing, (food, water crocks, substrate, etc.) It also has a bottle of mouthwash. Mouthwash contains alcohol, plus the taste of it will get a snake off you in a hurry. It is totally harmless to the snake. Honestly, for the most part, there are 2 types of bites. There is a strike and a bite or attack. A strike can occur pretty much anytime, but an attack or bite where the snake will not turn loose is usually a feeding responce. It does not necessarily mean that someone is underfeeding their snake, especially since everyone knows retics will eat almost everyday if you let them. I also carry a pair of sizzors in my back pocket. In the event that I am unable to get a retic (or burm) off me with the mouthwash, and it is coming down to me or him, the sizzors can be used to remove the snakes head. Before everyone freaks out, let me restate that this is only in a life threatening situation. I have never had to use them, and only had to use mouthwash once, but that was my fault. Also, I never handle any snakes over 10' by myself. My brother is a partner with me, and he is always present when I handle the large snakes. I reccomend that noone handle a large snake alone. There is never a such thing as a snake that won't bite. Anyways, sorry for the long post........

I can't believe your post, you have alcohol and scissors available! How smart! Really! I bet I won't be reading about you in the newspaper obituary. When my anaconda gets a little bigger, I'm going to do the same, with pepper spray added.

You know what gets me? Over on the anaconda forum, almost no one agreed that if you have a large snake, you should have pepper spray, stun gun, or whatever AS A BACKUP. Even with that tiger guy Roy just about dying, they still don't get it.
Oh, what gets me, is that when the rare event does happen that a big constrictor kills someone, it creates a bad name for us herp keepers, before long they will be outlawed. They already are in some municipalities. So, by not being prepared, they hurt me and my fellow herpers. Sure wish people would take this stuff seriously. Regards.

Just a suggestion, I would not use a stun gun. Studies show that the electricity from the stun gun will travel through anything that is in contact with the object being shocked. You could actually shock yourself rendering you helpless, then it is just a matter of who wakes up first. Like I said, I am not scared of my animals, I just have respect for their power. And if someone thinks that their animal will not bite them, they let their guard down and that is when bad things happen. As far as peeper spray, I have never used it, and I would be careful with it. As a last resort, maybe. Like I said in my previous post, if it is a life or death situation, do whatever it takes. When I had to use the mouthwash, it worked very well. The large male released immediately! He could smell the other male I was just handling, and when I got him out of his cage, he attacked and constricted. (I told you it was my fault) He was about 14' and I knew that wrestling him off me was not going to happen. Plus, in that situation, the snake is in such a state of frantic, that the least amount of stress to the snake is best. Had I not had the mouthwash, it would have been a chore. He had me by the leg, and was constricted around one leg, and my torso. It was frightening, but something you have to be prepared for. There will always be arguments for and against the keeping of large boids. But as long as the keeper understands the risks involved, and is prepared for the worst, we can keep the damage to a minimum. This ultimately keeps us out of the papers and off the news. Out of site, out of mind..... IMO ...... Anyone else have any large snake encounters they would like to share (admit)?

I was once grabbed by a 14ft female anaconda because of a stupid mistake. I had been feeding my eastern diamondbacks their bunnies and looked down to see that the anaconda had shed her skin. Like a fool, I reached into her cage to remove the skin without washing the bunny smell off of my hands. I was grabbed and wrapped from wrist to shoulder in a blink. I had a number of things for "backup" in the room; stungun, alcohol, ginsu... they did no good when I could not get up off the floor because my arm was stuck inside her cage. I ended up placing my mouth OVER her nose and blowing hard which caused her to release me and back off.

I am older and wiser now. I don't keep stun guns around, or alcohol, or anything else. I don't open cages with large critters in them unless I have someone standing there with some common sense that can help me if I have a problem. Gadgets and sprays do you know good when you are all wrapped up and can't use your hands.