Handling
If you're interested in gaining hands-on experience working with reptiles and amphibians, you’ve come to the right place!
For those looking to advance their handling skills, our 1-on-1 Leveling Courses offer a structured learning path. You’ll start with basic handling techniques and progress through four levels to become a confident and experienced reptile handler. These levels can be completed at your own pace — privately or with a small group of friends or colleagues.
If your goal is to learn how to safely and correctly handle venomous snakes, our world-renowned Venomous Snake Handling Course is the perfect choice. This group course is led by top specialists in the field.
Upon completion of each level or course, you’ll receive a Certificate of Completion.
All courses are live, in-person sessions held at our Center in Belgium.
The personal 1 on 1 leveling course:
LEVEL 1: Novice Handler
Basic Reptile & Amphibian Handling
In the first level you'll learn how to properly handle reptile and amphibian species that are easy to work with. You'll learn how to notice stress, how to approach an animal and how to safely catch and hold lizards, snakes, frogs and turtles. You'll also learn how to get animals accustomed to you, how to go about feeding and how to properly transport reptiles and amphibians in captivity and in the field.
LEVEL 2: Intermediate Handler
Reptile & Amphibian Fixation & Sexing
After a quick refresher on what you've seen in the first level, we'll advance to the second stage. In the second level you'll learn how to properly handle more advanced reptile and amphibian species. You'll learn how to work with larger species, how to determine the sex of an animal and how to restrain animals for careful observation.
LEVEL 3: Advanced Handler
Advanced Handling & Clinical Techniques
The third level will cover the more advanced handling techniques. In this stage we'll cover how to handle defensive specimens and how to restrain animals for clinical purposes, like administering medication, internal sexing, assist or force feeding. You'll also learn how to use handling equipment like gloves, snake hooks, snake tongs, tubes, probes and tweezers.
LEVEL 4: Expert Handler
Handling Dangerous and Large Reptiles
The final level will cover expert handling techniques. In this last stage you'll get the chance to work with large, potentially hazardous reptiles. We'll cover how to work in a team in order to safely work with larger species, how to make a risk-assessment, first aid and how to approach, catch and restrain large lizards, snapping turtles, giant constrictors, mildly venomous species and crocodilians.
Specialist group course:
Venomous Snake Handling
Specialized course on safe handling techniques for venomous snakes
Not what you were looking for?
Belgium
+32 472.93.97.73
info@herp.be
