Hognose bite!

insignia100 · 05-18-12, 09:40 PM

Well, tonight was a first. Bonnie, my female hoggie, decided that my index finger looked a lot like her hopper mice, so she decided to go for the kill.

She gnawed on the side of my finger for about 3 minutes before I could get her off. I tried pouring cold water to get her to let go (read that somewhere, can't remember where) without luck. I ended up gently taking the tip of my snake hook and wedged it between her upper jaw and my finger. That did the trick. While I wouldn't normally recommend that for the snake's safety, I was very careful and gentle. I wasn't going to let her gnaw on me for the next 10 minutes, especially since she was desperately trying to get my whole finger down her gullet.

We'll see if my opinion on the venomous nature of hogenose bites changes in the next few days. I'll keep you all updated.

shaunyboy · 05-18-12, 09:47 PM

it will be interesting to see if you have a reaction

if you do,could you take pictures as the reaction progresses

i hope you DON'T get too bad a reaction,but if you do get one.....

then there's NO sense,in missing out on a few pictures,in the name of science

cheers shaun

insignia100 · 05-18-12, 09:49 PM

Well of course. As they say, pics or it didn't happen.

shaunyboy · 05-18-12, 10:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by insignia100

Well of course. As they say, pics or it didn't happen.

SORRY mate,but.....

i'm waiting on pictures of a swollen,inflamed,painfull looking finger...

i know that sounds terrible,but i've seen other people on a different forum,sustain a hoggie bite,some had reactions,some didn't

imo,its interesting stuff

cheers shaun

insignia100 · 05-18-12, 10:05 PM

Well, I'll unwrap it in the morning and see how it looks. So far it doesn't hurt anymore.

insignia100 · 05-18-12, 10:10 PM

Oh yea, forgot to mention. I went ahead and took a few benadryl just in case. My medical training kicked in before the idea of keeping track of the reaction came to me.

shaunyboy · 05-18-12, 10:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by insignia100

Oh yea, forgot to mention. I went ahead and took a few benadryl just in case. My medical training kicked in before the idea of keeping track of the reaction came to me.

^^^^^
are they some kind of anti hystamiene pill,to stop allergic reactions mate ?

if so imo,that should keep any bad reaction,to a minimum

cheers shaun

insignia100 · 05-18-12, 10:17 PM

Yes, it is an antihistamine which hopefully will minimize swelling. However, I don't think benadryl alone is enough to stave off a reaction to venom completely.

insignia100 · 05-18-12, 10:28 PM

She was QUITE hungry. I just fed her and I've never seen her strike at a mouse like I did just now. Usually she's the kind of snake that will just slither up and start swallowing a hopper.

jaleely · 05-18-12, 11:47 PM

lol oh insignia! I hope you're okay. I only experienced a little swelling, and liquid seepage from the deepest puncture area.

All well (not at all) documented here
http://www.ssnakess.com/forums/heter...nose-bite.html

Benadryl did the trick...which makes me think it is more of a reaction to saliva than a venom...but some day i'll have enough money to study the true aspect of hognose "venom" lol
Good luck! Def keep us updated!

Terranaut · 05-18-12, 11:59 PM

Next time use a drop of booze. Rum or rye and just a dab on the nose or near it and they are off. I read this a while ago and used it on my king when he did the same thing to my son. Took about 1/10 of a second and he let go. Now we keep one of those single serving bottles next to the snake cages for emergency use....on the snakes.....if needed

insignia100 · 05-19-12, 07:58 AM

Okay, a little update this morning. I have some mild swelling, localized to the affected finger. No swelling in my hand. On appearance the swelling is very mild and practically not visible unless you look very closely. It is enough swelling to prevent me from completely flexing my index finger, though.

Gregg M · 05-19-12, 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaleely

Benadryl did the trick...which makes me think it is more of a reaction to saliva than a venom...but some day i'll have enough money to study the true aspect of hognose "venom" lol
Good luck! Def keep us updated!

Saying you do not think hognose snakes have venom is like saying rattlesnakes dont have venom. The studies have already been done. They are venomous. The toxins are there, no way around it. They are just not dangerous to humans. The symptoms from hognose bites do not go hand in hand with an allergic reaction and any treatment for an allergy has not alieviated the symptoms. This is also well documented.

If it were an allergic reaction, benadryl should alieviate the syptoms right away.

jaleely · 05-19-12, 12:22 PM

Which, if you saw, i said that benadryl did alleviate symptoms fairly quickly.
but, regardless, i haven't done much research about it and i know there are arguments back and forth.
I thought one post somewhere said that they lacked the venom glands..

Anyway, the other point is, they are not dangerous.

insignia100 · 05-19-12, 04:06 PM

Swelling seems to be decreasing a bit as the day moves on. I can flex my index finger more than I could this morning. Still very little visible evidence of swelling so photos would be pointless.