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Chezequers TJP Chezequers TJP Chezequers Dawn & Terry Chezequers TJP Skiefyer Rebelyell83 |
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Chezequers View Profile |
Thinking about getting hots
i live in south west England, UK i’ve been keeping reptiles since age 4 i’m currently age 17 as you can see thats 13 years of experience DWA liscence requires the holder to be 18+ thinking of getting a Green Tree Python due to the usually agressive nature of the species in order to get a feel for a species that cant be handled i wont be acquiring a hot for another 5-7 years i just wanna hang out on this board and get an idea of things and i’m thinking as first hot a pygmy rattlesnake, vipera berus (since they are native here), southern copperhead or a waglers viper but not too sure on the latter i got all kinds of snake handling equipment i have a territorial burmese python so ive had to work with tools in order to avoid being bitten i’m not stupid enough to touch any venomous snake dirrectly usually go looking for adders nearby so im used to tailing procedures i’m a firm believer in Al Coritz philosophy "there is no venomous snake with training wheels" so i judge my purchases on venom potency, size of animal and speed of strike obviously a fast moving snake with high venom and a lot of length like a mamba would be more dangerous than something like an eyelash viper again i’m gonna be commiting to 5 years of research so any input ya’alll can give would be greatly appreciated |
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| 06/06/08 04:26am |
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TJP View Profile |
Message To: Chezequers In reference to Message Id: 1753225 Thinking about getting hots
The one thing I will say is don’t completely base your purchases (after you get experience) on potency of venom. Stay away the pointy end, and it won’t matter. Of course, don’t get snakes that you aren’t capable of handling...mambas, tapians, etc, until you are ready. I’ve kept and handled some very hot snakes, and they weren’t nearly as hard to deal with as some of the "less venomous" snakes. Venomous and dangerous are two completely different entities that you will learn in the future. Good luck and glad to see you are taking your time. See if you can find one of the UK keepers to help you...they are out there. |
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| 06/06/08 11:53am |
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Chezequers View Profile |
Message To: TJP In reference to Message Id: 1753408 Thinking about getting hots
I can find wild Berus nearby fairly easily hmmm in terms of purchase i have had two major points constantly pushed on me the first is dont go with potent species the other is that it makes no difference on potency since any bite is dangerous i kinda worked out that taipans, mamba’s, bushmasters, king cobra’s and spitting cobra’s are extremely high risk species i love the look of gaboons but i was told to avoid them not just because of the venom but also the length of fang and bite yeild. However i also heard that they are slow moving when not striking, hook well and are fairly docile. i no OF uk keepers but i only actually know one man who is gonna at some point start keeping which is a bit annoying since a proper training from someone is something i would really value but i guess books and internet are gonna have to teach me what they can and work out the rest for myself i bought this book for a little help.
it really helps especially the way that its not as condescending as many venomous keepers are. (which i forgot to thank u for not being like when i posted, i was expecting the same old posts every other potential gets). I haven’t seen many UK keepers heres a few species i want to get at first is there anything that may be a little bit of a bad idea in these selections: southern copperheads vine snakes (ahaetulla prasina being a favourite) mangrove snakes pygmy rattlers not too big a fan of the carolina form though waglers vipers water cobra’s eye lash vipers after that im thinking rhino vipers gaboon vipers (rhinoceros as apposed to gabonica) fer de lance red tailed bamboo viper mojave sidewinder monacled cobra egyptian cobra and for when i got a lot of experience i’m thinking russels viper puff adders green mamba’s black mamba’s eastern brown snakes hairy bush vipers western and eastern diamond backs not a fan of king cobra’s or spitters |
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| 06/07/08 12:51pm |
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TJP View Profile |
Message To: Chezequers In reference to Message Id: 1754248 Thinking about getting hots
While seemingly sluggish, gaboons can move very quickly if they want, don’t get lead into a false sense of security. They hook well, but get big and heavy, so two hooks or tailing is a must with large specimens. In your first list, you have water cobra’s. Definitely not a snake to keep starting off. Very lethal, no AV. SAIMR has been shown to have some reactivity, but nothing to bet your life on. Bamboo vipers can be thrown into the first list, as can hairy bush vipers. However, you’ll want to stay away purpureomaculatus. They are very aggressive snakes, get large, and can fly up a hook quickly at you. They strike at anything and everything. Probably one of the worst tree vipers to keep. EDB’s and WDB’s aren’t too bad, individuals can be aggressive, but they hook well, so no need to lump them into the longevity list. I would definitely wait and put fer-de-lance into the down the road category, though. Bothrops have elapid like agility, get huge, and are a nightmare when the sun goes down. They can be extremely quick, and a bite will not be forgiving. That being said, some of the calmest snakes I’ve been around have been aspers in the wild, even before tiring them out. It’s an individual thing. The one thing you don’t want is a pissed off 7 footer. The way they move is impressive to say the least. Take your time with the elapids, kauothia are clumsy, but toxic. Haje can get big, and also have very potent venom. Keep in mind vipers and elapids are two different snakes. Tailing is a must with elapids. Good luck with whatever you choose, it looks like you have decent plan. |
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| 06/10/08 10:39am |
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Chezequers View Profile |
Message To: TJP In reference to Message Id: 1756770 Thinking about getting hots
i hear tailing a gaboon is not a good idea and that only 2 hooks should be used in case the snake strikes because they arent as easy to avoid as an elapid. Again Al Coritz has a species of water cobra which apparently is a naja but is a species that hasn’t been named properly, in one of his videos he gets hand on contact when not tailing them and having seen his other videos the only venomous snake he has touched bare handed when not tailing was a mangrove snake so i figured the risk can’t be very high thanks for the advice on the water cobra’s if theres no AV wouldn’t that technically make them more dangerous to be bitten by than a mamba i put the hairy bush vipers far on the list because there species apparently is a poor captive and tends not to survive. In saying that they do look fantastic. I would have thought the bamboo vipers to be more serious a bite than that lol. I never hear a good thing about purp’s i figured with diamonds the size made them a bit of a hazard as an earlier species (kinda harder to controll more strike range etc). fair enough on fer de lance. yeah im aware of the differences in vipers and elapids and tailing as standard since they climb the hooks easier. |
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| 06/10/08 11:22am |
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Dawn & Terry View Profile |
Message To: Chezequers In reference to Message Id: 1756803 Thinking about getting hots
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| 06/10/08 01:26pm |
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Chezequers View Profile |
Message To: Dawn & Terry In reference to Message Id: 1756905 Thinking about getting hots
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| 06/10/08 02:20pm |
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TJP View Profile |
Message To: Chezequers In reference to Message Id: 1756952 Thinking about getting hots
"yeah im aware of the differences in vipers and elapids and tailing as standard since they climb the hooks easier." Some vipers have to be tailed, and some will move quicker up the hook than certain elapids. The one difference is large vipers are much heavier, so quick one’s can be a handful when they spin on you or freak out. You’ll learn that in time. Large bothrops and lachesis need to be tailed, two hooks won’t work, and tongs are dangerous to the snake in my opinion. Gabby’s can do a backflip on ya, so two hooks CAN be safer. It’s personal preference, but I wouldn’t tail a small individual. It all comes with time. |
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| 06/10/08 03:18pm |
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Skiefyer View Profile |
Message To: Chezequers In reference to Message Id: 1753225 Thinking about getting hots
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| 06/16/08 01:11pm |
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Rebelyell83 View Profile |
Message To: Skiefyer In reference to Message Id: 1762694 Thinking about getting hots
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| 06/18/08 04:43pm |
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