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well that's just great.

Checkerbelly

Checkerbelly

New member
I went to a reptile show recently and noticed some really cool royal diadem rat snakes. I didn't know what they were at the time, but thought they were really cool. The guy had a few adults for sale. I asked him what they are and if they're very handleable. Before he handed a squirmy one to me I asked if they're rear-fanged or anything. He said no. I held a flighty 3 or 4 footer for a bit and took some chances at getting bit while putting it back in the container.

So now I read up on them and find out that they're rear-fanged and mildly venomous. Says they're not harmful to humans, but still. I explicitly asked him and he said no. I realize I was negligent too, but sheesh. Just makes me mad.
 
well did you get bit? was the snake aggressive??

Its almost like getting upset for driving for 20 years and never getting into an accident??:shrugs:
Just count yourself as being lucky and if it makes you nervous don't hold any thing like it again unless you know your snake.
 
I'm not very wise about hognoses, but it seems almost like those as I've heard both that they are and arent rear-fanged. And I've defintiely noticed that they generally aren't very aggressive anyway. But the most I know about hognoses is that they look pretty cool and are readily available through breeders.
 
I can kind of understand you being upset.. But only to the extent that I would obviously never do business with the guy. I mean he's either unaware or he lied to you, so definately I wouldn't be able to trust him enough to do business with him.
 
tom e said:
I can kind of understand you being upset.. But only to the extent that I would obviously never do business with the guy. I mean he's either unaware or he lied to you, so definately I wouldn't be able to trust him enough to do business with him.
Click to expand...

Yup. That's the bottom line. I wouldn't do business with someone who is ignorant (about the animals he is selling) or intentionally lied/mislead (to make a sale or whatever).

:cheers:
 
No, I didn't get bit. The snake was nervous, but just tried to get away. I feel like a heel because I didn't do the research first and I trusted the guy.

I also asked him if they're wild caught and he said no, which I kind of doubted.
 
I used to breed Royal Diadems for many years back in the 80s and early 90s, and was bitten many times by them, without any effect whatsoever. I had never heard of them being rear fanged.

However, in recent years there has been a lot of new research about colubrid snakes of many kinds that seem to be in the process of becoming venomous. It would not surprise me if diadems were in that group. It may end up being that technically, most colubrids are eventually considered to be in that category, and might even get them restricted in some places (lots of people are looking for any excuse to regulate, lol!). I haven't kept up on the newest research, and I will bet that the guy at the show might have not heard of any of this research. I think it is all going to boil down to what your definition of venomous really is, since so many snakes seem to have toxic elements in their saliva, and some may even be starting to develop somewhat enlarged rear teeth. But at what point are they considered rear fanged?

There may be some on the forum who have followed the research more carefully than I have, so feel free to correct or update any information or misinformation I may have posted.
 
I can understand how you'd be annoyed. My best friend is one of those people who is allergic to EVERYTHING, so she's constantly checking food labels, running away from insects of all sorts, and even checking ingredients in her face wash... And even her mother still gives her food with peanuts in it on occasion. I guess the point I'm trying to make is that people forget/disregard things which don't apply to them.

It seems like this snake is kinda "on the fence" so to speak. This guy might just not have been coming from the same area (mentally) as you were. I'm hoping he wasn't trying to be a jerk/idiot. Best thing to do is just walk away without any bloodshed and chalk it up to experience.

You can tell an elaborate story about your experience with a "venomous" snake now. ;)
 
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