WC Mangrove- 5 1/2 ft

I've helped patch up a few mangroves with conditions like mouth rot and abscesses, but that's about it - never kept them or worked with them except briefly to give this kind of care.

I treat them like any other hot basically. I wouldn't freehandle this species for the reasons I've already stated.

I read here daily now to just to see all the great info that is givin.

Thanks Tanith. And keep up the great work. Not many would do what you do.

Originally Posted by Sand&SunReptile

I always thought that Magroves only caused a bit of swelling, and maybe a bit of naseua. Not anything fatal unless you had a weak immune system, or you were small.
But, you are much more edapt at answering venomous questions, than I, Tanith. I guess he probably shouldn't be freehandling so much... I would never freehandle any hots, except some of the mildly venomous colubrids, like Hognoses and ect...

B.W. Smith reported in one post on a different forum group that he had a friend who took a bite on the knuckle from an adult mangrove. Along with considerable pain (which he apparently still suffers), he has lost some function in that hand. My female has killed an adult mouse in 10 seconds, without constricting. I treat mangs like I treat any venomous snake, with respect...that means NO freehandling.

Now with Heterodon, though I've seen and heard of rather bizarre outcomes from bites (such as significant swelling), nothing really serioius has been attributed to this species. That and the fact that they rarely if ever bite defensively makes them pretty easy to work with without hooks and such. All bites I've heard of from hognoses were feeding response related.

Hey Hognose 311

May I ask where you caught your beautiful Mangrove? Also, why are you free handling it?

Fred

The snake is not his, he robbed the picture from someone's classified ad on another forum.

And yes, freehandling mangroves is not a very smart idea, regardless that they are rear-fanged.