Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I am very soon going to be purchasing one of these and was wondering from the people that owned them.. till now I have been using hooks and tubes and never a tonk so I wanted to know if the SUPER tongs were actually worth the added weight, bulk (double the normal wall thickness) and price ($15) or should I be sticking to the normal gentle giants... Mainly would be dealing with at the largest an adult Atrox

Thanks for your time
PatrickR

Patrick:

They work great but need a small modification to make them even better. The top and bottom grabbing surface is too slick in my opinion. The snake can slither out unless you use a lot of pressure. I went to the hardwear store and purchased adhesive backed sandpaper, fine grit ~180 or higher and stuck it on the top & bottom of the tongs grabbers. The sandpaper just gives enough friction so they can't slip through using a safer amount of pressure.

Cheers!

Al
-----
A child of five would understand this. Send someone to fetch a child of five.
Groucho Marx

Hockey tape works fine too

Ian

I can see how they might be useful for elapids or arboreals. But I I can tell you from experience they're useless on heavier bodied snakes such as gaboons or rhinos. It just puts too much weight on the end of the tongs.

We use the gentle giants for many applications at our facility. We have one pair that is designated for "clean up duty (or dooty!); the wide surface and long handle allows us to scoop up large fecal matter out of cages. The other sets are used for moving snakes, manipulating them while doing other things, and other tasks. Contrary to what the other person said about these tongs being useless with large Bitis, I somewhat disagree; with the proper technique, and, a second hook, they actually serve the purpose quite well (and we have some VERY LARGE bitis at our place). I like Al's idea about the sandpaper although I haven't really had too many problems with slipping it would certainly provide more traction.

Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center

>>I am very soon going to be purchasing one of these and was wondering from the people that owned them.. till now I have been using hooks and tubes and never a tonk so I wanted to know if the SUPER tongs were actually worth the added weight, bulk (double the normal wall thickness) and price ($15) or should I be sticking to the normal gentle giants... Mainly would be dealing with at the largest an adult Atrox
>>
>>Thanks for your time
>>PatrickR
-----
Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
Lake Forest, IL

I don't use Gentle Giant Tongs, don't own them, but have seen them and toyed with them at shows.

However, I am at the opinion that tongs should never be actually used on a snake. Most tongs have scissor like jaws and only you can control the amount of pressure you put on the snake while capturing it or restraining it. How do you "Know" how much pressure to use? How do you know your "Not" hurting the snake?
Don't get me wrong! I use tongs to offer food, remove sheds, move water bowls, etc.
I am just not comfortable with using them to restrain or lift a snake with.
Oh, I have plenty of experience with tongs, I own an original pair of Pilstroms that is dated 1953! BUT, I haven't been using them that long! LOL!

I, too, was never a big "tong" advocate until I started using the gentle giant tongs. Take a pair, squeeze it hard in your hand, at it will only provide gentle pressure; on a large, bulky crotaline, I would have to believe that they barely flinched. If used properly, the snake will be extremely quiet and relaxed; if not used properly, they'll thrash about so it still goes back to using the equipment properly utilizing proper techniques.

>>I don't use Gentle Giant Tongs, don't own them, but have seen them and toyed with them at shows.
>>
>>However, I am at the opinion that tongs should never be actually used on a snake. Most tongs have scissor like jaws and only you can control the amount of pressure you put on the snake while capturing it or restraining it. How do you "Know" how much pressure to use? How do you know your "Not" hurting the snake?
>>Don't get me wrong! I use tongs to offer food, remove sheds, move water bowls, etc.
>>I am just not comfortable with using them to restrain or lift a snake with.
>>Oh, I have plenty of experience with tongs, I own an original pair of Pilstroms that is dated 1953! BUT, I haven't been using them that long! LOL!
>>
-----
Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
Lake Forest, IL

I guess I'm not using them properly.

Randal

.

Probably.....
But please don't send a hybrid one!

LOL!

I'll be glad to use a pair on Randall!

I have a pair that I use on adult atrox when the fly off the hook. I agree though, using them is a last resort. They can be padded also. I have rubberbanded some pieces of sponge to the grips and this works well. keep in mind when using tongs, you are not restraining the snake but guiding it into a ready container. I allow them to slowly crawl through the tongs when gripping them.
As Randall said, I also use mine more for removing hideboxes and water bowls.
-----
Tim Cole
www.Designeratrox.com/
www.AustinReptileService.net
www.AustinReptileExpo.com/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<
Conservation through Education

Randall, I get the feeling my reply irked you a bit...I should have been more clear on how exactly I use them. Tim said it perfectly, they are more of a "guide" rather than using them for complete control. They do provide some degree of manipulation that sometimes is necessary for squirrely specimens. We have several pairs (different lenghts) for the specific purpose of maneuvering difficult snakes (or, for species like Sistrurus, picking them up gently with the tongs), one pair for removing water bowls, hide boxes, furnishings and another pair strictly for removing feces; seems to work well for us. For the average venomous reptile in our collection, a couple of snake hooks will do the job but I always keep my gentle giants at my side just in case. Hope that clarifies things and I wasn't intending to question anyone's handling skills.

>>I'll be glad to use a pair on Randall!
>>
>>I have a pair that I use on adult atrox when the fly off the hook. I agree though, using them is a last resort. They can be padded also. I have rubberbanded some pieces of sponge to the grips and this works well. keep in mind when using tongs, you are not restraining the snake but guiding it into a ready container. I allow them to slowly crawl through the tongs when gripping them.
>>As Randall said, I also use mine more for removing hideboxes and water bowls.
>>-----
>>Tim Cole
>>www.Designeratrox.com/
>>www.AustinReptileService.net
>>www.AustinReptileExpo.com/
>> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~<
>>Conservation through Education
-----
Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
Lake Forest, IL

Rob,
Your reply didn't offend me at all.
Hope to see you at the IHS!

Randal

That's good to hear....and, I can't wait for the IHS (is there a speaker/topic list?).

>>Rob,
>>Your reply didn't offend me at all.
>>Hope to see you at the IHS!
>>
>>Randal
-----
Rob Carmichael, Curator
The Wildlife Discovery Center at Elawa Farm
Lake Forest, IL

FYI...I very well may be out in Illinois in Early-Mid May doing some work at one of the power plants(LaSalle Co. Station) for a couple of weeks. Hopefully I'll get a chance to come up and check out your facility. I'll know for sure in the next week or so when the dates are firmed up.

MCH
IHS Speakers