I said once you establish trust you will never get bitten. My bad.

Once I establish trust I never get bitten.

Here's a history of my monitor bites and the species involved.

Nile (V. niloticus): once. Stuck my white sock covered foot into his hide to try to get him to come out. Broke my big toenail in half with a lot of blood. Quick bite and release. Had him for 12 years, he lived to be over 16.

Water (V. salvator): once. The day I acquired him. He had gotten out of the box in the back of the pet store. About 18" TL. Nailed me on the thumb and did not let go for quite a while. I've never felt anything so painful. Lived with me for 8 years. Got to over 6 feet. Just the one bite.

Dumeril's (V. dumerilii): never. Those claws left quite a few marks, however.

Blue Tail (V. doreanus): never. Acquired as WC adult, never calmed down. Let me work around him, however.

Ackie (V. acanthurus acanthurus): once. Our female missed the bit of turkey and got me. Quick bite and release. Didn't hurt.

Ornate (V. ornatus): never. 9 months old at the moment. Acquired at one month old (Captive Bred). No bites yet. Knows my smell and that I am not a threat.

All bites (except for the Nile and the Ackie) occurred before trust was established. The Nile bite was a big idiotic mistake I made trying to get him to come out of his hide while an out of town visitor was over for a look at the collection. One of the reasons I now have "calls" for feeding time. They'll come out of anywhere for food!

Now I've been working with varanids since 1990, so perhaps I have more experience than some. I shouldn't come on here and say you'll never get bitten. But there are ways to minimalize the risk. Learn your animal. Let it learn you.

Chris