Hey all you kooky snake lovers !!!!
It is I, the EyeLashViper - Well, I have to admit that my recent bite by my Hognose has left me really fascinated with the effects of venom and the snakes that possess it. I have decided to learn as much as possible about hot snakes - my new sub hobby of my whole snake hobby is going to be reading about and observing hot snakes.

Now let me be the first to say that I am not intending to keep hot snakes at all. My experience with an adult hognose has put the fear of God in me as far as hot snakes go. The closest I intend to get to any of them is looking at them thru glass at the Los Angeles and San Diego zoo. I really want to see what a Black Mamba or Taipan looks like in the flesh.

As far as my bite goes, I am doing well. My doctor says it is healing up rapidly but I am probably going to have discoloration and a faint scar from my
wrist to my elbow on the underside of my right forearm. I will have to look at it as a souvenir of my snake hobby. Ha ha ha.....

As far a Hognose snakes go I now firmly believe that while a strike/bite/release from an adult hoggie is probably harmless, a strike/bite/GRAB AND CHEW is another whole matter. My hoggie spent about three whole minutes really chewing the heck outa my hand - I couldnt get her off of me and I did not want to injure her by pulling her off...I didnt want to break any of her teeth off or rip my hand worse. So I had to sit there and wait for her to realize that I was not a pinky rat. So I believe that I got a real good shot of her venom into a vein and that is why I ended up at Little Company of Mary Hospital with an IV in my hand and my other arm looking like it was going to fall off or something...I kid you not, I was actually scared that they were going to have to amputate my arm !!!!! it looked THAT bad...

So I advise caution with Hognoses. They are GREAT snakes as far as temperment and ease of care but my opinion is that they do INDEED have a moderately hot bite. Well.... I still love snakes more than anything and I have to say I feel sort of like a snake "Veterano" now that I have actually been nailed by something semi venomous enough to hospitalize me. It makes for a great story to tell at my reptile shop. All the guys down there have been treating me like a hero or something....They all want to see my arm and take pictures of it .....they even gave me free feeders for a month to make me feel better...free pinkys....yay...!!!!!!!!!!!!

The EyeLashViper