How to get started with venomous snakes.


This would be the question ringing in my ears on a frequent basis! How do you get into the husbandry of venomous with out killing yourself? Yes….”killing yourself”, one mistake and you could be dead…no more….an ex-snake keeper! We aren’t being melodramatic here…it’s a fact. Or even if you don’t die, you can expect a near death experience, loss of limbs, gangrene, and lots beside.

I think the picture we are painting here, is that maintaining venomous snakes, is dangerous, and cannot be entered into lightly. Only experienced keepers should even contemplate it.

So what is an experienced keeper?

An experienced keeper, is not someone who has kept one or two snakes for twenty years. An experienced keeper could be an individual, that has worked at a reptile shop (for example), and handled hundreds of different snakes over the period of just 18 months. It’s not the length of time in the hobby, so much as the number of individual snakes handled. Obviously the more variety of species, the better. It is only at this stage you begin to “read” snakes; estimate if they are going to strike, or make a bid for freedom, which direction they will go, how far they can strike etc. You will also get a feel for the agility of different species and how their behaviour differs. And most importantly; you will appreciate, that the calm snake you picked up yesterday, may fly straight at you, mouth open, the next!

Experience is key! Find a friend with a large collection and ask if you can help him “clean out” on a regular basis, or see if you can get work experience at a herp shop or professional breeders facilities. Keep as much variety yourself as possible.

The first steps

Even as an experienced keeper, rather than dash out and purchase a 10 foot Forest Cobra, lets take some baby steps.

1) Work with some hostile, agile harmless individuals; eg: Black Racers. Black Racers are very feisty, quite large and very fast. They remind me much, of many Elapide members. Treat it with utmost respect, and make believe it is venomous. “Tail” it on a regular basis. For Elapids, “tailing” is a vital handling skill. As venomous snakes do not get handled like their non venomous counterparts, they tend to be much more aggressive. You cannot work with friendly Cornsnakes or Ball Pythons and expect to get the same hospitality from an Indian Cobra. Work with as many nasty tempered non venomous specimens as you can. Some people advocate the use of working with False Water Cobras or Boiga sp, as a training tool. I would agree, but only if they are bad tempered!
2) Get a mentor. A mentor is someone already working with “hots” who allows you to work with them from time to time, to gain experience. This can be a tricky one, as finding such people prepared to give up their time will be rare. But persist, get involved on a “hot” forum (such as Find Me A Reptile!), get out and meet venomous keepers. If you show experience, willingness to learn, enthusiasm and consideration, your chances will increase.
3) Working with venomoide snakes. This is a controversial one, as many people do not agree with the process of removing the animals venom sacks. I am not opposed to the concept, and I have worked with many venomoide species in the past including Mambas, and found the experience valuable. Needless to say, you need to be 100% sure the snake IS venomoide (if the procedure is not completed correctly, they can still be lethal!), and don’t forget, you still need a DWA licence (in the UK) to keep a venomoide snake.

The first venomous

At this juncture you may be ready to dip you toe in the water. But wait….it’s not time for your first Cobra! Start with something a little easier to deal with.

Good examples would be:

Copperheads
Pope’s, White Lipped or Waglers Pit Vipers
Mangrove snakes
Sahara Horned Vipers – (Cerastes sp)
Bush Viper – (Atheris sp)

At this stage you will have done your research on your intended species, and hopefully, even a little experience via your mentor.

When you first come to dealing with your new subjects, you will fully appreciate the psychological difference of working with venomous and non venomous. This is the action that will increase adrenalin production in your body. (This can be an unexpected phenomena.) You must at all times pre-plan your husbandry practises, and be expecting and prepared for unforeseen actions in your specimens. If you are tired or unwell (that includes alcohol related)…..don’t go near them! You must be alert, calm and confident during all maintenance activities.


Obviously I have merely outlined the broader picture on the route to keeping that first venomous snake. I haven’t discussed licensing, snake rooms, caging, handling techniques, trapping boxes, emergency protocols, first aid, or 101 other very important things! But I hope it does illustrate that the transition from non-venomous to venomous need not be as daunting or unachievable as you might believe.

Posted by Ty on Tuesday, February 24 @ 22:00:52 GMT

Back in the day



this is just a few of the Cobras that have passed through our hands at CRC over the years:

Forest Cobra

Cape Cobra (Speckled Phase)

Snouted Cobra

Egyptian Cobra

Red Spitting Cobra

Rhinkals Cobra

Posted by Ty on Monday, May 18th @ 02:00:52 GMT