# Milking Scorpions?



## Frogsarethapoop (Nov 22, 2006)

Does anyone milk (I am not sure if milk is the right word, but you get the idea) their scorpions and collect the venom?


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## PIter (Nov 22, 2006)

I don't but several people do for their own reasons. Usually you get your scorpion to sting through a membrane into some sort of cup.


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## Gigas (Nov 22, 2006)

I think profesional places use a suction tube? (i know they to for myglamorphs) but i milked my H. arizonensis once out of curiosity, put some cling film(cling wrap?) over the top of a loooong plastic cup, he stung and delivered venom with no provocation apart from a tap on the back!

not alot of venom though, only 2 drops


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## fusion121 (Nov 22, 2006)

There's very little point in the hobbyist collecting venom, it does not store easily and what would you do with it anyway.

Milking scorpions is pretty easy though, you can use electrostimulation if you want big yields but a vial with parafilm over the top works very well for the task.


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## ScorpDude (Nov 22, 2006)

As far as I'm aware people who do it for research use electrostimulation? I couldn't find any more info on it when I searched (and I don't recomend anybody else tries, when I searched I found something men do involving the prostate   :? :8o  )

Edit: fusion beat me to it.


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## Frogsarethapoop (Nov 23, 2006)

I was thinking of collecting a whole bunch and then for fun injecting it into a mouse and seeing what happens.


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## Michiel (Nov 23, 2006)

electrostimulation has a drawback. The scorpion does not only release venom, but also excrements, dialuting the venom.....Like fusion said, why does one need scorpionvenom......


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## TheImperator (Nov 23, 2006)

Not exactly a bad idea. There is some guy who collects all types of spiders, milks them, and then sells the venom so it can be used as an Antivenom.


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## skinheaddave (Nov 23, 2006)

TheImperator said:


> Not exactly a bad idea. There is some guy who collects all types of spiders, milks them, and then sells the venom so it can be used as an Antivenom.


If you wanted to start doing this you would need to provide enough to make it worthwhile to the purchaser.  You would also have to do the collection under laboratory conditions and package it as your supplier wanted.  Not a horrible idea, but hardly an endevour for the average hobbyist.

Cheers,
Dave


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## becca81 (Nov 23, 2006)

*Moderator's Note*

In case anyone forgot, the topic at hand is "Milking Scorpions."  Several posts have already been deleted.  Please don't hesitate to use the "report a post" function at the bottom left of each post if you see a post that is way off-topic, inflammatory, etc.

@FrogmanJ - I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and think that you didn't know about any other ways of humanely killing mice.  You might want to do some reading, as there are many good threads about humane ways of quickly and painlessly killing mice for the purpose of feeding and/or preserving.

Thanks,
Becca


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## Frogsarethapoop (Nov 24, 2006)

What are you telling me that you don't like the way that I kill mice? Like severing their spinal chord or smacking them down on the table head first while holding their tail is better. I have done them all, and the scientific method (which is used in labs by the way) is to sever the spinal chord. Well I have done that and I think that is disgusting. I use my method, because they are my mice, and because I have been doing it for years.


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## Gigas (Nov 24, 2006)

Your definition of cruel seems to be variedon the amount of physical damage done to the rodent. Placinga live animal in the freezer seems to be a very out of sight out of mind approach to killing the animal, could you find it hard tope wih the killing of the mouse?
Where a mouse would sit in a freezer alive and kicking for quite some time snapping their necks/ co2 pump is over inless than a second with the animal dying painlessly. yes more brutal but Much better for the actual animal


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## Rigelus (Nov 24, 2006)

You sound indignant Frogman, yet it was you that suggested injecting mice with scorpion venom for "fun".


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## Frogsarethapoop (Nov 24, 2006)

First off, snapping a mouses neck is gross. Second, it doesnt get easier than using my bag in freezer method. And third yes I do think it would be fun to watch a mouse get injected with scorpion venom. Maybe my neighbours cat with black widow venom? Ha I hate that damn thing, anytime I leave my windows open it hops in my cars and pisses all over the seats. I already told them that if I catch it, its as good as dead. And in my books, feeding a snake an alive mouse is as cruel as it can get. The mouse basically gets digested alive. If you want to get that technical, feeding a scorpion a cricket and watching it get eaten alive is far more cruel. Are you saying that cruelty cannot come to insects and only rodents or what? 5 mins in the freezer and the mouse is dead.


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## Gigas (Nov 24, 2006)

Well if your killing them this way because the humane way is gross is it not just easier to order prekilled animals


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## Gigas (Nov 24, 2006)

<edit>
and i would also just like to say i'm sure its illegal to kill mice in that manner when i think about it? i know it is on this side of the pond, can anyone in th US tell me about the governments standing on killing mammalian/avian food items?


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## becca81 (Nov 24, 2006)

Last warning to please keep it on-topic.  If the thread continues to spiral off-topic and into personal attacks, it will be closed.

Becca


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## Frogsarethapoop (Nov 24, 2006)

<edit>

Yes, bagging and freezing mice that I breed for the sole purposes of feeding is way easier than ordering prekilled frozen mice. That is probably the reason why I breed my own!

I live in Canada. There are no animal cruelty laws. Pets are considered personal property. Right now there is a petition going on in Canada for stiffer laws against animal cruelty because some dude dragged his dog behind the truck until it was dead, and he only got a $500 fine.


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## tyrel (Nov 25, 2006)

FrogmanJ said:


> <edit>
> 
> Yes, bagging and freezing mice that I breed for the sole purposes of feeding is way easier than ordering prekilled frozen mice. That is probably the reason why I breed my own!
> 
> I live in Canada. There are no animal cruelty laws. Pets are considered personal property. Right now there is a petition going on in Canada for stiffer laws against animal cruelty because some dude dragged his dog behind the truck until it was dead, and he only got a $500 fine.


I live in canada, my father is an RCMP officer, and there ARE animal cruelty laws.


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## hamfoto (Nov 26, 2006)

you can't "milk" a scorpion...no teets!

I milked a cat once... 

Chris


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## Frogsarethapoop (Nov 26, 2006)

Cool my girlfriends dad is an RCMP officer in BC as well. There are animal cruelty laws, yes, but they ain't turtle poop. If you live in Canada then you have probably heard of that guy who dragged his dog behind his truck for whatever reason and killed it. All he got was the maximum fine of $500. If you did that in the States, you would probably go to jail. In Canada, animals are considered private property and you are basically free to do whatever you please with them! There is a country wide petition going on right now to "stiffen" the laws.


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## Frogsarethapoop (Nov 26, 2006)

becca81 said:


> Last warning to please keep it on-topic.  If the thread continues to spiral off-topic and into personal attacks, it will be closed.
> 
> Becca



So should I make a new thread title "animal cruelty" or something? Why can't we talk about animal cruelty? I never knew that was not allowed.


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## fusion121 (Nov 26, 2006)

I think the point is that this is the scorpion forum and not the place for moral philosophy. Try the watering hole for posting more general topics your likely to find allot more people willing to discuss it.


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## marcelo_987 (Nov 26, 2006)

The only reason why I would 'milk' a scorpion would be to compare a P. Imperator's venom to an L.q.'s

I would compare how much venom would it take to kill a mouse.
Here's my guess- L.q.:1 drop Emp: 2 gallons

Of course I would never get anywhere that close to a L.q.


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## Frogsarethapoop (Nov 27, 2006)

marcelo_987 said:


> The only reason why I would 'milk' a scorpion would be to compare a P. Imperator's venom to an L.q.'s
> 
> I would compare how much venom would it take to kill a mouse.
> Here's my guess- L.q.:1 drop Emp: 2 gallons
> ...



Well exactly I was wanting to inject a mouse too and I all I got was <edit> on my face for it. Not to mention about 4 infractions and a warning and after this post I will probably be banned, but I will be back. When I come back, perhaps I will check out the watering hole, I have never been there.


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