Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi, I'm not very experienced with rattlesnakes at all and i have 2 questions. I had some venom from a southern pacific rattlesnake get on my floor in my garage and my laundry room and i tryed to clean it up but i couldnt tell where it was, so i might have missed some. If the venom drys all the way, is it still harmful or does it have any affect at all??? I had someone tell me that its not a problem and someone tell me it can be a problem so i need some opinions.

The other question is for my friend. He accidently ran over another southern pacific and the skin was not damaged so he wants to keep it. He says that when he picked it up one of its fangs was stuck to the skin and had punctured it. Does this make a venom problem with the skin or is there nothing to worry about??

Hopefully someone can give me some answers.
Thanks so much

CosThKng

How'd the venom get on your garage floor and laundry room?

Hi:

It will degrade over time and would not worry about it.
The snake skin will be fine.

Al
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"Fighting on the forums is like competing in the Special Olympics, even if you win, you're still retarded."

DH June 2005

For the first reply... I was holding a souther pacific b/c it was in my garage and i was moving it and while i was holding its head, venom was leaking out.

Second reply... About how long do you think it will take to dicipate all the way, and can it harm my other animals? It cant spread if i touch the area where it is and touch something else can it??

Thankyou

Not to get preachy on you, but if you don't know a lot about rattlesnakes, picking one up by the head is NOT the smartest thing you can do. In case you didn't know, Southern pacifics have one of the more problematic venoms of all U.S. venomous snakes, and a bite from one could very easily kill you. I would advise next time you find one, call someone experienced in rattlesnakes to come and remove it for you. At the very least, use a long broom or even better get a snake hook to maneuver the snake with. Just make sure you don't end up hurting it. Head-pinning is one of the most dangerous maneuvers even very experienced individuals can do with a hot, and again, even very experienced individuals get nailed doing it all the time.