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i ran across this thread and have been debating wether to reply to it or not. i have no intention of getting into the venomiod verses non debate and this is my opinion and mine alone.
first off i trained for over a yr before i got into hots started with rattlers went to elapids. fell in love, to this day no python, corn, etc has ever come close to a cobra or mamba, just the way they act in a captive inviroment is just unreal. i especially love african naja. especially of all things spitters. when my ex wife told me she was pregnant i was working on getting a breeding sized male banded egyptian for my female. now than at this point the thought of a venomiod never crossed my mind. but along comes kid(not using him as an excuse, nore looking down at those that have kids and keep hots just not my thing.) so out went the collection. the way i keep my animals while safe and very secure. i did not trust it or my room to be kid proof so choose not to risk it.
well a couple of yrs go buy and i come upon a great deal on a venomiod monocled, and i thought to my self why not, i missed keeping cobras it was a good deal (for a venomiod) so i bought it. now it is time i explain my personal thoughts on keeping a venomiod and the things you really should do if you keep them. first thing is treat them as if they were venomous, this goes for housing access, handling etc. than you should test the venomiod every so often. my proceedure was twice a yr put a live rat in there let the snake bite it a couple of times pull out the rat and put in a cage leave over night. in the morning if its still alive you have a successful venomiod. if its dead well you know what happened *the whole point of this thread*
actually owned that same cobra for almost 6 yrs till last yr when work was sending me to hawaii for 6months and work was talking about making it permanant *thank god it wasn't* so i sold off all my stuff. in all that time every rat turned up live in the morning, my son who is now 4 and has no interest in the kingsnake that i got him, he wants to play with of all things my scrub( kids go figure) he is still alive and has shown that he can be trusted not to open cages etc., but for his safety and my peace i will only bring venomiods into my house/ at this point in time.
if you cannot handle venomous you have no reason owning venomiods period. venomiods just add a degree of, i hate to use this phrase but words fail me, but it adds a degree of peace of mindo or safety to the whole experiance, because lets face it wether you admit or not, or wether you have been lucky so far, accidents do happen, your kids will open that shed door while you are fighting a 7 ft really pissed cobra. they happen. for me venomiods are a viable option for those who have kept venomous but because of current circumstances can't ( assuming you are in the right according to you laws.)
now this is based on a surgery being down by a vet and both glands and ducts are removed using proper techniques and drugs.
i do not support home grown venomiods backyard surgeans etc. they should be shot or tortured depending on preferance.
owning a venomiod is in no means a way to get a hot and not treat it like one. i beleave getting a venomiod is a personal choice and by no mean excuses the person the of getting the proper training prior to getting one.
and in lue of the "rat test" you can always milk it to. i just have issues milking snakes. just a personal thing.
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