# Lets be honest about mentors



## brian (Oct 22, 2005)

Like it says lets be honest This past few weeks a lot has been said about mentors

Right apart from reading a few books who of you have actually had a mentor Sorry don't mean watching your m8 getting his wdb out from the Viv once a week to maintain the Viv. I mean with a few different species of snakes and handling and feeding.

If you can also remember who it was and was it a course how much was it. 

Thanks.........Brian


----------



## SiUK (Feb 15, 2007)

I had a guy that I visited, and watched work with various snakes and had some handling experience.


----------



## Angi (Nov 12, 2005)

I have 3 mentors - all free as they are people I know, between them they have around 40-50 years of venomous keeping experience and a huge range of snakes.


----------



## captaincaveman (Nov 6, 2006)

i just spent loads of time round loads of different breeders, some hots keepers, some rarer and specialist species breeders and loads of normal breeders and keepers of large collections:no1:


----------



## Tops (Apr 26, 2007)

i just watched a few steve irwin videos and went for it!


----------



## captaincaveman (Nov 6, 2006)

Tops said:


> i just watched a few steve irwin videos and went for it!


 
:lol2: i watched mark o'shea ones, but im struggling to keep up with the amount of falling over that im meant to do


----------



## Rick (Aug 15, 2007)

I try to listen to all peoples opinions as well as doing some research etc.... but theres only one person i truely trust ...... 
This is because of their no b/s approach to keeping, length of time, and professional manner they go about their job.

BUT for hots it would be 2 ppl id ask, both are rfuk members just so i could see both sides of the coin so to speak.


----------



## brian (Oct 22, 2005)

So after all that has been said about mentors only 3 people have replyed. UUUUMMMMM


----------



## DeanThorpe (Apr 9, 2006)

its not a busy section mind...


----------



## Barry.M (May 19, 2006)

captaincaveman said:


> :lol2: i watched mark o'shea ones, but im struggling to keep up with the amount of falling over that im meant to do


Funny that,I tried copying Austin Stevens but all the falling down waterfalls and running on top of trains is bloody hard work!


----------



## Scoffa (Nov 23, 2006)

I've been keeping snakes for 20 years and started with a pair of Burmese, never had a mentor or needed 1. I've handled snakes, in shops, that have made the proprietor cringe ans say, "How the hell did you manage to get that out without a strike." I guess handling snakes has a nack to it which some people don't have. If I know that a snake is gonna be a bit tempremental I play a game where I say to myself, " I'm gonna pick that snake up without a bite or a strike." If the snake bites or strikes then I loose and it's game over. If I was going to keep hots then I'd probably try some of the tree boas and some of the more agressive stuff. You really don't want to be handling snakes that are gonna bite you every time you get hold of them and I don't think you wanna be handling hots unless it's an absolute necessity. So what is a mentor? Is it somebody who holds your hand when your Gaboon Viper bites you and says " Don't woory the anti-venom will be here soon"?


----------



## King of Snake (Sep 18, 2007)

Angi said:


> I have 3 mentors - all free as they are people I know, between them they have around 40-50 years of venomous keeping experience and a huge range of snakes.


I'm lucky enough to have had a couple of days with the same mentors that Angi has. You never quite forget the first time you handle your first venomous snake but I was fortunate to be with blokes who were great keepers, who had a very easy teaching style and who kept things nice and relaxed in the hot-room despite being surrounded by venomous beasties.

I'd recommend a mentor if you plan on keeping hots. Especially if the mentor has a mate who's a senior paramedic that can tell you all about what the venom does when it gets inside you.

Those exams were a bit nerv-wracking though!!!!

:crazy:


----------



## Rob123 (Jan 29, 2008)

i have 15 years experience with non dwa snakes. everything from burms to corns with a few rear fanged on the way. never had a mentor before, but now i am applying for my dwa i thought it a good idea to learn from some friends who are experienced with a wide range of vipers and elapids. a mentor is not there to " hold your hand while a gaboon bites ya!" a mentor is there as an experienced person who is willing to pass on knowledge of the snakes behaviour and teach you correct handling techniques, with the aim of you not getting bitten! as a dwa training snake you would be far better off with a good feisty mangrove or fwc than any tree boa tho.


----------



## King of Snake (Sep 18, 2007)

Rob123 said:


> i have 15 years experience with non dwa snakes. everything from burms to corns with a few rear fanged on the way. never had a mentor before, but now i am applying for my dwa i thought it a good idea to learn from some friends who are experienced with a wide range of vipers and elapids. a mentor is not there to " hold your hand while a gaboon bites ya!" a mentor is there as an experienced person who is willing to pass on knowledge of the snakes behaviour and teach you correct handling techniques, with the aim of you not getting bitten! as a dwa training snake you would be far better off with a good feisty mangrove or fwc than any tree boa tho.



Apparently Cookes Tree Boas and Aru Scrubs are good hot-training snakes too.


----------



## Rob123 (Jan 29, 2008)

why? i can poss understand the scrubs but why cooks? what benefit would they serve apart from being a bit snappy?


----------



## Rob123 (Jan 29, 2008)

and why only aru scrubs?


----------



## glidergirl (Nov 27, 2006)

Scoffa said:


> I've been keeping snakes for 20 years and started with a pair of Burmese, never had a mentor or needed 1. I've handled snakes, in shops, that have made the proprietor cringe ans say, "How the hell did you manage to get that out without a strike." I guess handling snakes has a nack to it which some people don't have. If I know that a snake is gonna be a bit tempremental I play a game where I say to myself, " I'm gonna pick that snake up without a bite or a strike." If the snake bites or strikes then I loose and it's game over. If I was going to keep hots then I'd probably try some of the tree boas and some of the more agressive stuff. You really don't want to be handling snakes that are gonna bite you every time you get hold of them and I don't think you wanna be handling hots unless it's an absolute necessity. So what is a mentor? Is it somebody who holds your hand when your Gaboon Viper bites you and says " Don't woory the anti-venom will be here soon"?


Having that kind of nack isn't going to help you with a venomous snake though is it? Would you feel confident doing that to a cobra? There is a lot more to keeping venomous snakes than learning the hook and tail technique (for example), there are things that just wouldn't occur to some, simple things that need pointing out, like for example having handling equipment on the outside of your V room, or just seeing how an already established keeper's room is organized, how the vivs are positioned, safety features in the room, how to fill a water bowl without putting yourself in danger, various holds and it's better to be advised of what hold is likely to put you in danger with certain types of snake rather than find out the hard way.


----------



## leptophis (May 24, 2007)

much as it pains me to say so, i agree with marie


----------



## decembers_spawn (Jan 17, 2008)

I have a friend who keeps DWA snakes. I watch on happily, but there's no chance on god's green earth of me ever picking one up lol


----------



## ratboy (Jan 10, 2007)

decembers_spawn said:


> I have a friend who keeps DWA snakes. I watch on happily, but there's no chance on god's green earth of me ever picking one up lol


I would quite hapilly handle them under the proper guidance and mentorship of someone like Pete.

But I would never keep them.


----------



## hysteria_uk (Nov 28, 2007)

i have been mentored but not handled for a long time now so need to start from scratch


----------



## garybingham (May 4, 2007)

isthere anyone in the north east that would mentor me 

i will be willing to learn and have a very keen intrest in hot snakes


----------



## Myo (Feb 14, 2008)

barrym said:


> Funny that,I tried copying Austin Stevens but all the falling down waterfalls and running on top of trains is bloody hard work!


 
Austin Stevens!?! you're jokin aren't you!?! if you copied him you'd be dead by now! i saw his programme 7 deadly snakes where he went to find the 7 deadliest snakes in the world and he was bitten by 3 of them! That's not a good ratio!


----------

