# Colubrids > Hognose >  Hognose Bite

## nikevijo

I was bitten by my 5 month old (about 6") hoggie today. He dug in and didnt let go for a few minutes. Soon after my finger had doubled in size. I was quite surprised by this. Has this happened to anyone else? Then I found this, poor guy

http://www.herpnet.net/bite/

----------


## Mft62485

Wow.  Glad the hognose is my girlfriends and not mine. :Very Happy:  :Very Happy:  :Very Happy:

----------


## Kinra

Hognose bites are a lot like bee stings.  Some people have a reaction to their saliva and some don't.

----------


## llovelace

He should not have let the snake nom nom for over five minutes, he got alot of venom, poor guy.

----------


## Ga_herps

tested out the supposed effect from a medium sized hog female about a year and half ago. I let her chew on my finger for 10 plus minutes, and the effect was a creeping tingle and the finger swelled. No other problems persisted after the swelling went down. I don't recommend anyone doing this though since some people can have serious reactions from bites. The best thing to do is not get bit if at all possible since essentially it is a mildly toxic critter.

----------


## mainbutter

Haven't had it happen to me, pretty darn rare for anyone to get bit by 'em, and with the chewing that seems to be involved in all of them, I can only imagine they are feeding-response bites.

Anyhoo, like I said, hasn't happened to me.  You haven't experienced symptoms of allergic reactions, so really just keep an eye on the swelling.

Take some ibuprofen, and feel free to ice your finger for up to 20 minutes at a time.  I use those gel-packs from pharmacies when I need to ice small areas in particular.

----------


## Skiploder

It's extremely rare to have an allergic reaction to snake venom unless you are inhaling dried residue on a daily basis or have been bitten or otherwise exposed to it repeatedly.

If you do have an allergic reaction, go immediately down to your local store and buy a lottery ticket - it's your one in a billion day.

It's one of those internet myths that persist no matter how often it's debunked - that you can easily and spontaneously develop an allergy to something you've never been exposed to.

Hognose venom is low in 3ftx (3 finger toxins) and rich in proteins. 

Swelling, a little bit of pain and itching. The longer you let them chew, the worse it can be.  Studies have been done in the past and papers have been published on bite accounts that indicate they really get the juices flowing during a feeding strike - and that's when you get the swelling and itching.

It also explains why some people have little to no reaction.

Technically, they are venomous. In reality, they are harmless.  Really crappy delivery system to boot...........

----------

PitOnTheProwl (08-31-2011),_Redneck_Crow_ (07-22-2011),_Simple Man_ (07-22-2011)

----------


## Maixx

Maybe keep a bottle of listerine near when handling, if he bites again it can be used to get them to release quickly.

----------


## Melody

Ooo!  :Surprised:  that bite bite was nasty! i never knew hog bites where that bad...  :Confused2:

----------


## Michelle.C

> Maybe keep a bottle of listerine near when handling, if he bites again it can be used to get them to release quickly.


Eh, I prefer some cold water on a stubborn hand chewer. It's a lot less stressful for the snake.

----------


## lance

if any of my hognose's bit me i'd bite there butts back but joking aside hope your ok.

lance

----------


## Skiploder

> Ooo!  that bite bite was nasty! i never knew hog bites where that bad...


They're not really that bad.

If you let them chew on you and they work it into you, you'll get some swelling.  It's not that hard to get them to let go, and they have pretty small mouths.  

There's really no reason why one has to be latched on to you for so long - unless you let them.

----------

