CHOMP ! oooowwwww!!!!

[cheekeebandito]

Well, my normally tame 9 yr old Mangrove "Spencer" got me the other day. I had just finished feeding my baby Columbian Boa , and reached in Spencer's cage to clean his water dish.... SNAP ! I didn't wash the "mouse smell" off of my hands like I normally do and he reacted BIG time. I forgot how hard he can bite.... It's been a few years since he got me and the last time resulted in a trip to the Emergency room at the hospital........ still have some nerve damage from that one ! I guess it's a good (?) reminder for me to concentrate more on what I'm doing !! Have a good one, Les:bugged:

[iguanaman001]

Serves you right!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You should know better then that. Always wash your hands before you handle a second snake or reptile. I have had that same experience with my animals.

[cheekeebandito]

Yep, you're right...... just thought I'd pass it along to maybe save someone else the pain and aggravation. I was more angry with myself than Spence. He just reacted to the smell of food like he normally would have...... my bad ! Like I said, he's normally docile and I don't blame him at all....... Regards, Les

[LdyDrgn]

Where's the pic? We need proof if you want in to the Bleeder's Club :p

[Mitch]

What is a Mangroves temperament like in general and how much damage can they do to a human?

I like the look of these snakes a lot.

[cheekeebandito]

He's a monitor lizard (varanus indicus) . He's just under 4 feet in total length and fairly docile (usually) . But beware when the scent of food is in the air ! I'm not sure if this applies to all Mangrove monitors, but definitely with mine. He's got large razor sharp teeth and can clamp down like a pair of vice grips..... believe me , I know first-hand. He's been an awesome part of my reptilian collection for 9 years. I got him as a hatchling...... Regards, Les

[burmer]

I've always wondered about their temperament. I have been wanting one for a few years and haven't seen too many around.

[Xetox]

I take it they are a close relative to the nile? sounds bout like them.....I got a baby back a few months ago and he is fairly docile, but still as little as he is, when he does bite he can already draw some blood! There are a couple pics of him in my gallery under the misc, sectioin of Reptiles...

[Tim and Julie B]

It must have been painful! My Tegu got me yesterday. Iwas handling him/herandI saw a small cut on his/her nose and looked at the cage for a split second and I guess my off hand got to close. It got me right on the closed knuckle of my middle finger so it didn't do any serious damage. A little blood and a lot of swelling! It took a few methods to get it to let go!:D Tim

[burmer]

My nile is still tiny and today was the first day he drew blood from me. He got me on the skin between the fingers and hung out there for a few minutes.

[NewLineReptile]

That make's me think of the time my 3ft nile took a bite of my finger right around the nail i ended up loseing my finger nail and got 3 stitches (got to love NILE'S lol)

[Mr.Lizard]

Actually mangroves are very similar to peach-throats in appearance and really not all that inclined to bite but are often a bit flighty. They'll give you a nice bite like a Nile though.
BTW,the best method I've come across yet for encouraging a monitor to release his bite is to put a swab soaked with alcohol right in the corner of his mouth...works pretty good,a lot better than submerging him under water and waiting.
Just gotta be careful not to get alcohol into his eyes.
If someone has another or more effective method I'd love to hear about it.