woman in NY dead from Mamba Bite

Bill, Ron.
If we squabble with each other when we know what the other person is saying, those who would take away what we're talkin' about are gonna have easy pickins. Let's get along.

Originally Posted by hhmoore

Driving, flying, and horseback riding (the list is quite extensive, but this is enough to make the point) are conscious decisions with obvious risks - should people injured during any of those activities be left high and dry by the insurance companies, as well?

I take your point, but as a SCUBA diver I am excluded from most standard insurance, as it's seen as a high risk activity - I beg to differ, but then again I suppose most venomous keeper would too. I think many people would consider keeping "hots" outside of what would be considered "normal" risk factors by insurers.

Originally Posted by hhmoore

Driving, flying, and horseback riding

Hey, Harald, now you're getting personal. Those are three things I love to do, but I sure never considered myself much of a risk-taker. That's no doubt where the discrepancy lies, for the public as well as insurance companies.

If I was bitten by a hot while hiking on a trail, I'd fight tooth and nail if my insurance tried to deny the claim. There's no way that would be my fault (that anyone knows of...). There's simply no real justification for denying snakebite claims, even if the offending snake was part of a collection and/or provoked. Liability is not an issue for any other aspect of health coverage that I'm aware of. Do lung cancer patients get denied treatments because they smoke(d)?

...off to bed now..getting distinctly (fruit-)loopy.

Originally Posted by Helenthereef

I take your point, but as a SCUBA diver I am excluded from most standard insurance, as it's seen as a high risk activity - I beg to differ, but then again I suppose most venomous keeper would too. I think many people would consider keeping "hots" outside of what would be considered "normal" risk factors by insurers.

I'm very much aware of that. I'm still waiting for them to make similar claims about motorcycling being a disqualifying factor in health insurance. (I was in an accident a few months ago, and despite having my health insurance information, I continue to get bills for the full amount - approx $6000, between ambulance, emergency room, CT scans, ER physician, radiologist. So far, no explanation of WHY this is the case).
My point wasn't that keeping hots isn't a risk, it was more that our lives are FULL of risks...and most of them are statistically more common than a venomous keeper being bitten by a snake in his care. To just blindly accept the notion of being disqualifed for coverage when we are involved in things that present greater risk seems to reek of It can't happen to me.

ive been keeping venomous snakes for over 20 years and im pretty sure the inland tai pan is the deadliest snake in the world yes the mamba kills more ppl but they live where there is ppl unlike that sp of taipan just what i spotted in the article that was off sorry a lil off topic

Originally Posted by SDExotics

ive been keeping venomous snakes for over 20 years and im pretty sure the inland tai pan is the deadliest snake in the world yes the mamba kills more ppl but they live where there is ppl unlike that sp of taipan just what i spotted in the article that was off sorry a lil off topic

How can the Inland Taipan be the most deadly snake in the world when it hasn't killed anyone??? Don't you have to kill people to be considered deadly? The Coastal Taipan in Australia has killed people but the Inland Taipan hasn't. Also, scientist now say that the Inland Taipan is no longer the world's most venomous snake. It is now the most venomous land snake but the world's most venomous snake is a sea snake called Hydrophis belcheri, common name... the Faint-Banded Sea snake. If you want to talk about the world's most deadly snakes, look into the Saw-Scaled viper and the Indian Cobra. Both species kill more people then any other snakes in the world.

There are many factors you have to consider when factoring in the world's most deadly snake. You have to look at how close they live to humans, how aggressive they are towards humans, how venomous they are, where the bite is located, how much venom they inject into the bite site, how far is medical treatment is located and more facts at that. That is why Australia has very few snake bite deaths and India has 10's of thousands of snake bite deaths a year. If I am wrong, please correct me someone.

Originally Posted by SDExotics

ive been keeping venomous snakes for over 20 years and im pretty sure the inland tai pan is the deadliest snake in the world yes the mamba kills more ppl but they live where there is ppl unlike that sp of taipan just what i spotted in the article that was off sorry a lil off topic

The deadliest venomous snake in the world is the one that just bit you. Treating any venomous snake differently based on LD 50's or any other rating system is a recipe for disaster.

Originally Posted by Morelia4life

How can the Inland Taipan be the most deadly snake in the world when it hasn't killed anyone??? Don't you have to kill people to be considered deadly? The Coastal Taipan in Australia has killed people but the Inland Taipan hasn't. Also, scientist now say that the Inland Taipan is no longer the world's most venomous snake. It is now the most venomous land snake but the world's most venomous snake is a sea snake called Hydrophis belcheri, common name... the Faint-Banded Sea snake. If you want to talk about the world's most deadly snakes, look into the Saw-Scaled viper and the Indian Cobra. Both species kill more people then any other snakes in the world.

There are many factors you have to consider when factoring in the world's most deadly snake. You have to look at how close they live to humans, how aggressive they are towards humans, how venomous they are, where the bite is located, how much venom they inject into the bite site, how far is medical treatment is located and more facts at that. That is why Australia has very few snake bite deaths and India has 10's of thousands of snake bite deaths a year. If I am wrong, please correct me someone.

I agree with most of what you posted, however the Inland Taipan has killed people. I remember reading about an American biologist/ zooologist studying snake venom in the 1950's who was envenomated while handling (One fang penetrated the finger) a freshly caught IT and died as a result of the bite. I would also add the Russells viper to your list of India's killers as I believe that rounds out the big three.

If you go by LD 50 I believe the beaked sea snake is also more deadly than the Taipan. With Mambas it is more a case of being in populated areas and the potential aggression level of the animal. Though it should be noted that not every encounter results in an attach, and there have been many noted encounters between Mambas and humans in nature that have not resulted in an attack. I had a geology professor that relayed a story about a mambas that lived in the roof thatch of a hut he stayed in while doing field research. The snake was aware of his presence and he of the snakes but both managed to coexist peacefully for a couple of days.

Originally Posted by Pmsayi

The snake was aware of his presence and he of the snakes but both managed to coexist peacefully for a couple of days.

And Japan coexisted with its nuclear reactors peacefully for a long time. Good planning is everything; hoping for the best may turn out to be less satisfactory.

Originally Posted by Pmsayi

I agree with most of what you posted, however the Inland Taipan has killed people. I remember reading about an American biologist/ zooologist studying snake venom in the 1950's who was envenomated while handling (One fang penetrated the finger) a freshly caught IT and died as a result of the bite. I would also add the Russells viper to your list of India's killers as I believe that rounds out the big three.

If you go by LD 50 I believe the beaked sea snake is also more deadly than the Taipan. With Mambas it is more a case of being in populated areas and the potential aggression level of the animal. Though it should be noted that not every encounter results in an attach, and there have been many noted encounters between Mambas and humans in nature that have not resulted in an attack. I had a geology professor that relayed a story about a mambas that lived in the roof thatch of a hut he stayed in while doing field research. The snake was aware of his presence and he of the snakes but both managed to coexist peacefully for a couple of days.

I didn't mention the other two snakes that India has that represent the Big 4. The whole list of the Big 4 are: Saw-Scaled Viper, Russells Viper, Common Krait and the Indian Cobra. They have mix reviews on which species kills the most. Some agree that it is based on whatever part of India you are in. Either way they are all very dangerous snakes that I want know part of. They are to be respected and not to be taken lightly neither in captivity or the wild.