Reptile & Amphibian Forums

First of all, I live in Illinois.
I am NOT interested in breeding ANYTHING venomous.
I am NOT interested in ANY other venomous species.
I only want to be able to own ONE venomous animal.
And that animal is (to me) the most beautiful snake on the planet.
I am going to need someone to pull out their crayon box and give me as MUCH info as possible.

Questions; What all goes into owning a venomous snake? Will I be able to get a permit for a gaboon in IL? Will I be allowed to have the anti-venom at my house for GOD FORBID accidents? What tools/supplies will i need? I am an accomplished and intelligent snake handler, but I have never dealt with any venomous. Gaboons do not get any bigger than blood pythons right? I know they have 2 inch fangs, I would never try to handle it other than with a hook, and never other than just to clean the cage. I am NOT irresponsible as I would make sure that I have everything 110% ready before I even start "shopping" for the one that I want, AND not without proper practice at another venomous keepers facility.

I believe that I am so attracted to them, because it is a "whole package" snake. Not too big, not too small, GORGEOUS colors, huge but beautiful head, the longest teeth of any other snake, and the sheer respect this animal demands.

Thanks for your replies.
Positive criticism is welcome, but please don't be negative about it.
Thanks,
Matt

The link below should give you the short answer to all your questions as long as you live in Illinois.

Gerry
Link

Well, thats disappointing. I am going to be moving to Iowa in a few years. What about there? I guess, could look it up myself, but maybe someone here already has a link for me to read up on the laws in Iowa about this same matter. Thanks.

The unpleasant reality is that Gabby's are really not a beginner venomous snake.

It's great that you want to work within the laws of the states in which you live. To work within the laws AND work in a safe manner is going to require you to live in one of the few states that allow venomous keeping.

Hopefully you can end up somewhere where keeping local venomous animals is legal to learn the ropes and eventually get to where you can keep Gabboons legally.

Best of luck.

Thanky you. I guess it just doesn't look like it is going to happen.

Can't argue the beauty and the overall enthusiasm for this species.

IMO, these are big animals when talking venomous. A slip-up with a big Gaboon can be real trouble. I'm not being negative, just darn realistic. I would consider that for sure, as there are some outstanding venomous snakes out there that are considerably smaller and far more survivable if bitten.
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Antaresia maculosa
Antaresia childreni
"Pythons the size of kingsnakes and with slower metabolisms"

Mark G

Thank you. I don't think that this is going to happen for me.

Matt,

Obviously, living in IL means the answer is no, but I might add a few other points.

I think venomous snake keepers should have to keep other difficult species for a few years first. I might suggest trying to keep an unpredictable, aggressive species for a while. Something like a wild-caught Amazon Treeboas. They are pretty hardy but they will teach you very quickly not to be careless in your cage cleaning/feedind duties. One mistake means you get a nasty bite. And when that happens you have to consider that if you made that mistake with a venomous species it might have been disfiguring, expensive and possibly lethal.

If you lived in a state where venomous was legal, I would suggest starting out with a native hot like a copperhead. If you can keep that for a year or so with no mistakes, it means you are learning to be careful enough. However, if you make a mistake, it isn't necessarily life threatening and local hospitals will have the antivenin. And if that does happen, you can ask yourself "What would have happened if that had been a Gaboon?".

Another thing to seriously consider is the potential financial costs of owning a venomous snake. A venomous snake bite can easily ring up tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills. If it bites someone else, your liability could be many times that.

Here's some questions to ask:

1. How would I pay for the medical bills incurred by a bite (assume something in the $25,000 range)?
2. If the answer to number 1 is insurance, does my medical insurance cover being bitten by a venomous snake that I owned? Does my homeowners/renters cover it?
3. If someone else was bitten by a venomous snake I owned, who would cover my liability? Who would cover their medical bills (your medical insurance wouldn't, and their insurance might come after you for it). Does my homeowners/renters cover that? Some homeowners/renters policies specifically exclude those kind of claims and you could be on the hook for tens or hundreds of thousands of $$$.
4. If my animal escaped to an area of my house that I couldn't recover it (in a crack in a foundation, etc), would I be willing to kill it to prevent a neighbor or some other innocent party from being put at risk? (The answer needs to be yes).

If you don't know the answer to these questions, you aren't ready for venomous snakes. Sure, these are worst-case scenarios, but you need to have considered them. I have automobile insurance and wear my seatbelt when I drive even though after over a million miles and 30 years of driving, I haven't had an accident.

I'm not saying don't do it. I'm saying if you do decide to do it somewhere that it is legal, make sure you understand the real responsibilities.
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Chris Harrison
San Antonio, Texas

Certainly a lot to think about. There is a place in IL called "The Grass Is Rattling." They found a Gaboon in a dumpster at an airport nearby a few years back. Everyone thought that is was dead, but when the snake handler went in to get it, it moved. Anyways, The Grass Is Rattling acuired the snake and had it on display at th Tinley Park NARBC. That was the first time I had ever seen one. It really blew my mind how ....I can't even think of a word to describe the feeling that I got when I glued my face to the glass for like 20 miutes...lol. When I finally took my face away from the cage and looked at my GF, she looked at me and said, "NO WAY!" Does she know me or what..lol. Anyways, I don't think that I will ever live in a state that will alow me to have one, so thats sad. In reduard to your "self" questions, I am very anal about my set ups. I have never had an escape, and I have NEVER BEEN bitten by any of my ball pythons, and I have been keeping them for over 5 years. If I had the wonderful oportunity to have one, I might even pay a profesional to clean the cage for me and what not. Any ways, I guess that I am just trying to say that I would deffinatly have saftey WAY up on the importance latter!!!! But again, it doesn't look like it is going to happen for me. I am going to start keeping ground boas as they "look" sorta like venomous snakes, and the Isabel is a beautiful white color with an amazing pattern, just like the "look" of the Gabbies.
Thanks for taking the time to write all of that good stuff up for me! It really helped put some things into perspective.

Your answer is very easy.

http://market.kingsnake.com/detail.php?cat=105&de=892444

Good Luck
NCH
Link