» Site Navigation
1 members and 3,423 guests
Most users ever online was 6,337, 01-24-2020 at 04:30 AM.
» Today's Birthdays
» Stats
Members: 75,095
Threads: 248,538
Posts: 2,568,730
Top Poster: JLC (31,651)
Welcome to our newest member, Daisyg
|
-
New Gila Monster and info
Well figured it was time to let this guy have his own thread that I can update and folks can ask questions on. After talking with my wife, and consulting with folks who maintain our collection when we travel, we made the decision to add one of my bucket list reptiles to the group! Gila Monsters are lazy lizards that is sometimes confused with being docile in nature. Truth be told, they rarely bite unless highly molested, but when they do bite tragedy can occur. Drop for drop the Gila Venom is as potent (LD50) as a Western Diamondbacks. The fortunate side of that story, however, is their bite is rarely capable of delivering the needed amount of venom to cause systemic issues aside from standard issues surrounding what most consider a dry to low yield bite from a venomous snake. In our bite protocol study on the species, 80% of victims who were envenomated (60% of bite victim cases reported) were seen with localized pain and swelling. As we add symptoms the affected percentages drop tremendously. Things such as: increased heart rate, nausea, diarrhea, shock.
Because their is no antivenin presently made for Gila Monsters, treatment usually only involves treating the systemic symptoms as they arise. The largest threat to life when dealing with Gila Monster bites is the risk of anaphylactic reactions. Not a single fatality can be attributed directly to the result of a Gila Bite, and most bites were caused by captive specimens or of course individuals handling wild specimens. Further, roughly 60% of the cases studied showed alcohol to be present.
Without further reading, allow me the pleasure of introducing our newest family member: Chomper (named so from the character in the land before time).
Head shot.
And of course, a bow since this was a gift from my wife to me for early Christmas.
Working on building him a desert burrow habitat, so will keep this posted as it progresses any questions, let me know!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
-------------------------------------------------------
Retics are my passion. Just ask.
www.wildimaging.net www.facebook.com/wildimaging
"...That which we do not understand, we fear. That which we fear, we destroy. Thus eliminating the fear" ~Explains every killed snake"
-
The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to reptileexperts For This Useful Post:
Albert Clark (03-12-2016),distaff (12-11-2015),Fraido (03-12-2016),Megg (12-11-2015)
-
Thanks for the great info.
In the 60's Gila Monsters seemed to be a big thing. They were scripted into a lot of movies and TV. As I remember, a bite would ensue instant death all of time.
Last edited by Reinz; 12-11-2015 at 02:53 PM.
The one thing I found that you can count on about Balls is that they are consistent about their inconsistentcy.
1.2 Coastal Carpet Pythons
Mack The Knife, 2013
Lizzy, 2010
Etta, 2013
1.1 Jungle Carpet Pythons
Esmarelda , 2014
Sundance, 2012
2.0 Common BI Boas, Punch, 2005; Butch, age?
0.1 Normal Ball Python, Elvira, 2001
0.1 Olive (Aussie) Python, Olivia, 2017
Please excuse the spelling in my posts. Auto-Correct is my worst enema.
-
-
He is just charming.
Very inspiring for beading.
-
-
Re: New Gila Monster and info
Originally Posted by Reinz
Thanks for the great info.
In the 60's Gila Monsters seemed to be a big thing. They were scripted into a lot of movies and TV. As I remember, a bite would ensue instant death all of time.
They could also spit venom at you and their breath was toxic enough to kill 50 men.
Fun fact: the Latin name suspectum comes from the Latin meaning of suspect. This was due to the namer suspecting it was venomous. Heloderma means bony skin. Which is what the beads are - bones.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
-------------------------------------------------------
Retics are my passion. Just ask.
www.wildimaging.net www.facebook.com/wildimaging
"...That which we do not understand, we fear. That which we fear, we destroy. Thus eliminating the fear" ~Explains every killed snake"
-
-
BPnet Veteran
Re: New Gila Monster and info
Love these guys, would love to own one. Unfortunately they are illegal here((
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
-
-
Re: New Gila Monster and info
Yeah Gila have a lot of regulations around the US.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
-------------------------------------------------------
Retics are my passion. Just ask.
www.wildimaging.net www.facebook.com/wildimaging
"...That which we do not understand, we fear. That which we fear, we destroy. Thus eliminating the fear" ~Explains every killed snake"
-
-
Re: New Gila Monster and info
Very cool. I always thought their patterns looked like Indian or Incan art/hieroglyphics. I am sure if you look close enough you'll find Kokopelli in there somewhere. Congrats on your new addition and I hope you are getting something equally awesome for the misses.
-
-
Amazing animal.
I kept a few of these and I need to get back to it for sure.
With careful handling, they get super docile in time.
-
-
Re: New Gila Monster and info
Originally Posted by Najakeeper
Amazing animal.
I kept a few of these and I need to get back to it for sure.
With careful handling, they get super docile in time.
Docility not to be mistaken with lazy... He's already incredibly calm once out of his enclosure. He only hisses when I startle him inside. But the risk is always there, albeit at a lot lower risk IMO than even a copperhead. But a risk not justified but always using engineering controls (gloves) and respect.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
-------------------------------------------------------
Retics are my passion. Just ask.
www.wildimaging.net www.facebook.com/wildimaging
"...That which we do not understand, we fear. That which we fear, we destroy. Thus eliminating the fear" ~Explains every killed snake"
-
-
Re: New Gila Monster and info
Originally Posted by rlditmars
Very cool. I always thought their patterns looked like Indian or Incan art/hieroglyphics. I am sure if you look close enough you'll find Kokopelli in there somewhere. Congrats on your new addition and I hope you are getting something equally awesome for the misses.
Hah! Yeah she is. I think she'll be quite happy on Christmas Day. I already caved and let her keep one of the foster cats as an early Christmas present, so even if I did nothing else she'd still be happy!
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
-------------------------------------------------------
Retics are my passion. Just ask.
www.wildimaging.net www.facebook.com/wildimaging
"...That which we do not understand, we fear. That which we fear, we destroy. Thus eliminating the fear" ~Explains every killed snake"
-
Posting Permissions
- You may not post new threads
- You may not post replies
- You may not post attachments
- You may not edit your posts
-
Forum Rules
|