Article of the Month
September/October 2015
Tools of the Trade
I get asked some rather strange yet I suppose valid questions on call-outs that I attend. Questions such as: Are you going to hurt the snake? Are you going to use your hands to catch it? Don't you have any special equipment to handle the snake? (YES! I do, did you not notice the odd shaped "poles" in my hand), all and all, when faced with a potentially deadly snake, I don't think snake handling equipment is the first thing on the distressed persons mind. September/October's article will be on the Tools of the Trade we as snake catchers use to safely handle snakes.
Snake Tongs
The original snake tong was invented by a Mr Lawrence G Pillstrom and was and still is a patent called Pillstrom Tongs, it was first published on the 24th of September 1957. The Pillstrom tong is still used by many, shall I say, "old school" snake handlers and even by those of todays generation. Obviously things have improved since 1957 and there are quite a few brands of well known tong makers. The Pillstrom tong uses a stainless steel shaft rod which connects the handle to the jaw mechanism. Personally I have never used Pillstrom tongs so I can't shed much information on them. Midwest tongs for example, on the other hand, which use a spring mechanism attaching the handle and the jaw, I do have personal experience at using. The advantage of using a tong with a spring mechanism means that the amount of pressure placed on the snake is much less than using a tong with a steel rod. I have tested this by placing my own finger in between the jaw and pressing the handle as hard as I can and it barely hurts. Obviously that amount of pressure would not even be required when handling a snake.
A pair of Pillstrom TOngs, notice the steel shaft rod which connects the Handle to the jaw.
Snake handling tongs come in many different shapes and sizes and at the end of the day it's up to you to choose the tong which you are more comfortable at using. Using tongs however is not always recommended depending on the type of snake that you are dealing with. For example, I had a call-out where I had to climb a few meters up a tree to grab a Boomslang (Dispholidus typus), unfortunately the 'hook and tail' method which you generally would use on a Boomslang was not going to work and quite frankly would of put me in great danger either from falling or being bitten. Needless to say the female Boomslang was not impressed AT ALL with me grabbing her with the tongs and she went absolutely ballistic. First time in my life I ever had a Boomslang react that way. And so to end the story, using tongs on a snake can make them react in a extremely defensive way despite offering safety in return.
Snake Hooks
The snake hook is pretty much a modified golf club where instead of having a club head at the end of the shaft there is a odd shaped hook which, just like tongs can vary in length, girth and shape. Other than that they all have a steel shaft and a grip normally made of rubber just like a golf club.
Different hooks have been designed over the years to be able handle different types of snakes more comfortably, for both the snake and the handler. Special hooks are also designed for pinning snakes heads during the "necking" process as well as a variety of other methods.
A python snake hook, these are used for heavy bodied snakes such as Puff Adders
A Midwest Tong, notice the spring mechanism at the handle and jaw.
A standard snake hook, these vary in length
A pinning hook, used for pinning a snakes head during the "necking" process
There are a number of different methods we as snake handlers use when handling snakes, as stated earlier depending on the type of snake we are dealing with these methods include, to name a the common two, the Hook and Tail Method and the Double Hook Method.
The Hook and Tail Method refers to using your one hand to carefully grab the snakes tail and the other holding the hook to lift the middle-front body section of the snake off the ground. It takes quite a bit of practice to get it right and to top it off you need to carefully watch the snakes attitude before, during and after being hooked as they can turn on you rather quickly.
The Double Hook Method on the other hand is a lot more safer as you don't even need to touch the snake, however this method only really works effectively on thick bodied snakes such as Puff Adders. What this means is, using both hooks, you support the front and back body sections of the snake on the hooks, thus hopefully giving you enough time to transport the snake to the container you intend to put it in for relocation before it decides to start moving off the hooks.
The Hook and Tail method being used on a Mole Snake
A perfect example of the Double Hook Method on a Puff Adder
The Hook and Tail method being used on a Cape Cobra
Equipment
There's a few more items we require to complete our "tool set". Some of them are not required but are nice to have such as the Hexarmor Snake Resistant Gloves (which also break your bank account) and snake gaiters. While there are other tools such as a snake tube or bucket which are required to safely transport the snake to it's intended relocated destination. I will go over some of these items here.
Hexarmor snake resistant gloves
There are quite a number of snake handlers which use these gloves when handling snakes. The gloves are designed with a super fabric which forms tiny guard plates which are packed tightly next to each other. The gloves were not designed to be used with handling snakes and are therefore not snake bite proof. However they do offer a sort of backline defense against snakebite. I have seen many people using them without having a fang puncture through the glove, I have also watched youtube videos were they test the gloves on snakes like the King Cobra without any effect on the dummy extremity inside the glove. However as stated earlier in no way are they 100% snakebite proof. There have been a minor number of cases where a fang has penetrated a handler and has sent them to hospital. These gloves are also rediculously expensive, averaging around the 4 thousand Rand mark here in South Africa.
Snake Tubes
Snakes Tubes are small lightweight containers used for transporting snakes. They generally have a screw on lid, a handle to hold while carrying and a few holes to allow air into the container so that the snake may breathe. Snake Tubes are extremely popular and almost every handler uses them. The tubes are useful for smaller snakes that are to small for a Snake Bucket. They can also be used to persuade a snake that is not co-operating very well to slither into the tube as it seems like a dark tunnel to them. And for a snake, a place to hide means security, so they should be enticed to go in there.
A useful tool for anyone working with snakes.
They also come in a variety of lengths and sizes.
Snake Buckets
Snake Buckets are used for the transportation of larger snakes. They also come in a variety of sizes and shapes but generally have a lid with a centralised handle to avoid your fingers being around the edges of the lid when opening and closing the bucket. They also have some form of a latch which serves as a lock so that the snake can not push the lid off. Personally I also place a bunch of crunched up newspaper inside my Snake Bucket so that the snake has a place to hide and feels more secure. I believe this helps a lot when relocating the snake as they are rather relaxed when I open the bucket again to release them and not agitated from being in a open space.
Venom Defender Goggles are used to protect your eyes when dealing with spitting snakes, or rather snakes which can spray their venom. These goggles are specially designed and are similar to goggles you would use when swimming. They have clear see-through plastic or glass lenses and are surrounded by rubber on the edges, this rubber sits tightely on your face stopping any venom from dripping down into your eyes. A important thing to note, snake venom should have no effect at all on your skin and should only be able to do damage if it enters the blood stream. Therefore if you have any cuts on your body or face, you would definitely need to cover these up as best as possible when dealing with a spitting snake.
Venom Defender Goggles
Snakebite Kit
Transparent Snake Tubes are used mainly for educating the public or to safely work on a snake (removing ticks, dead skin etc). These tubes allow the handler to persuade the snake to slither up the tube, then using his/her hand he can hold the snake so that it can not move further. These tubes prevent the snake from turning around also. A handler can then show the patterns of the snake up closely for example or allow the public to touch and feel the snakes scales safely.
Snakebite Kits are part of almost any snake handlers inventory, as you never know when the unnexpected may happen.
Personally my snakebite kit includes invaluable items such as:
* Cotton Swabs
* A set of safety pins
* Crepe Bandages
* Dettol
* Latex Gloves
* Plasters
* A list of contact numbers in the unfortunate case of snakebite.
A kit should also contain a pocket sized mouth to mouth resuscitator. There a number of First Aid courses as well as Snakebite first aid courses around which train you how to use these.
Transparent Snake Tubes
And that pretty much brings us to the end of the article, I hope that everyone reading this has learnt something new and that you get a idea of the type of equipment we as snake handlers use. Please take a look at the links provided below were you can purchase such equipment and also read about the different products.
If you have any questions or suggestions there will be a comment section below, also feel free to head over to my Facebook Page and drop a comment or suggestion there if you prefer that.
Snake season is in full swing and the call-outs are pouring in, please be safe with your kids and pets. And remember I am just a call away. - Jason