Reptile & Amphibian Forums

do you guys handle your poisenous snakes?do they get tamed?

I think you'll find that most experienced, mature hot-herpers handle their charges as little as possible, and will almost always do so with the proper tools and techniques. There are many ways to ensure your and the snake's saftey when refilling/cleaning water bowls, cleaning cages etc. and there's no real reason to 'free-handle' a venomous snake other than to show off or for the rush. If most of us were honest, we'd admit to doing at least once or twice, but hopefully we all become a little older and wiser and cease that kind of nonsense.

About a 'tame' snake ... most wild-caught snakes will calm down considerably after a while, assuming they aren't constantly being handled or otherwise being messed with (lots of traffic, poking on the glass to make it rattle/hood, etc.). However there are exceptions in probably every species, snakes that just will not calm down. The Western Diamondback comes to mind as being the worst offender (nasty temperment). The Black-tailed rattlers are known for being rather docile (usually calm down quickly) but I'm sure there are some terminally mean ones out there in collections.

With captive-born specimens, my experience is that they tend to be more docile from the beginning. I had beautiful male from a clutch of baby Canebrake rattlers that never rattled, ate like a pig, and was so docile that I did stupid things like laying him in my hand from the hook and letting him crawl around ny arm. He never struck and was as docile as a ball python. But I was young and stupid and I now know that he could have popped me at anytime for no reason at all. In fact, his father did hit me (I grabbed a light fixture that was falling into their box) and it cost me two nights in the hospital. I also had a small CB Gaboon that was so mild-mannered I was tempted to move her without tools, till I saw the pictures and read the reports of a bite to a collector in the midwest. NASTY! I'm not sure the guy is 'right' even today!

So yes, most snakes will calm down in captivity. But you simply MUST remember that these are essentially wild venomous reptiles and can ruin your whole week. Or in the case of Gaboon Vipers or Cape Cobras, they can ruin you ... period.

Phil H.

Right now the only venomous snake I have is a big female southern copperhead. I don't usually keep more than copperheads because I'm not a real big hot fan to begin with. Copperheads are one of my favorite species, regardless of if they're venomous or not. I've had about 20 of them and none have ever shown any signs of aggression but I still don't "handle" them. My big female southern is my baby. I've had her for years and she's incredibly tame. I have picked her up on occasion to move her or whatever, but never handle her like she's harmless because she's not. It's just not worth getting bitten. They should be appreciated from a distance. I've never been bitten by a venomous snake and I have had considerable contact with them. I've also kept cottonmouths and a few rattlesnakes of my own. And been around friend's collections. I've noticed that people that have been bitten are the people that have a very calm attitude to handling. I know a guy that's been bitten by just about everything and you should see how he handles his snakes. It's no wonder but somehow he seems to just shrug them off without even going to the hospital most of the time. It's pretty simple, if you don't want to get envenomated, don't touch the animals. But if you don't mind it, go ahead, I guess.

...free-handling a venomous snake is a form of natural selection, although most people don't view n.s. in anthropomorphic terms. If you do, and get bitten, then your bloodline deserves the appropriate consequences and thus you display a general lack of fitness. Remember, before you get bitten, it is entirely up to you to survive.

I was going to say something of the sort, but couldn't think how to word it. . Personally I think it would be cheaper for people to freehandle hots to go play on the freeway instead. (but I'm really good at playing on the freeway!)