The Practical handling training is a full day of working with a variety of reptiles to gain experience and to be assessed for competency. We work with Lizards, Monitors, Pythons, Colubrids and Elapids, giving you a well rounded day. The day will start with a practical experience of identification using dichotomous keys and snake skins, this will complete the unit on Snake Identification. Next we move onto working with techniques such as pinning, hooking and tongs, using rubber snakes as the working tools so that we eliminate the risks to both you and the animal. After completing this session we put away some of the tools and start to focus on the practical handling of live animals, using tools and our own hands, we will work with you to ensure you have a well rounded approaching to snake and reptile handling.
You must complete the online E-learning course ($250) prior to attending the practical courses unless you are doing refresher training.
We are often asked about refresher training, this is also an excellent opportunity for people to improve their skills and refresh the information they have gained in the past (you will need to supply evidence of previous training such as your statement of attainment from an RTO).
We use both dragon lizards and Varanids (monitors)
Pythons
Colubrids
And some of the elapids used in the training include:
Australaps (Copperheads)
Acanthophis (Death Adders)
Pseudechis (Black Snakes)
Pseudonaja (Brown Snakes)
It is a violation of the Veterinary Practices Act to operate on an animal without the procedure having medical benefit to the animals, also milking snakes creates a biological material that must be properly processed and disposed of (its a biohazards material), it is also a procedure that require specific animal ethics approval. So these snakes are just as you would find them in the wild. Our staff are well trained in the handling of snakes and reptiles along with being qualified assessors and trainers, they are also qualified in appropriate first aid for any potential injuries, not that we would expect anything to happen....in fact there has never been a student injured on one of our courses since Sean took the helm in 2005......a record we strive to maintain.
To book follow this link and select the Practical handling course that is closest to you:
2018 Training Dates:
- Friday 9th November 2018 Moorabbin
- Tuesday 11th December 2018 Moorabbin
2019 Training Dates:
- Wednesday 30th January Moorabbin ($150)
- Tuesday 5th March Brisbane ($250)
- Saturday 16th March Moorabbin ($150)
- Tuesday 26th March Darwin ($300)
- Wednesday 24th April Moorabbin ($150)
- Saturday 11th May Moorabbin ($150)
- Tuesday 14th May Cairns ($250)
- Tuesday 30th May Townsville ($250)
- Tuesday 16th July Moorabbin ($150)
- Tuesday 6th August Darwin ($300)
- Saturday 31st August Moorabbin ($150)
- Tuesday 15th October Townsville $250)
- Saturday 26th October Moorabbin ($150)
- Tuesday 26th November Moorabbin ($150)
If these dates dont suit you, try arranging a group of between 6-10 people and we can quote to attend any part of Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and the Northern Territory!!