My life experience so far in Philippines

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hk blues
Posted
Posted
56 minutes ago, Greglm said:

 I am sure you can find this insecticide here and it is nontoxic to mammals

It's from Japan and available on Lazada but pricey - $70approx. for 1L.

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Possum
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Posted
1 hour ago, hk blues said:

It's from Japan and available on Lazada but pricey - $70approx. for 1L.

1 liter is a lifetime supply.  I bought one pint .

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Snowy79
Posted
Posted
20 hours ago, Colsie said:

The problem l have is with Cobra's...the girl has a dozen or so rabbits, about the same in chick's and chickens... a couple of cats and three dogs...so if a cobra comes a calling it's really not practical to shoo it away... It's on with the wellies and out with the Sundang...I really dislike deadly snakes 

Cobras especially King Cobras are snake killers. The vast majority of snakes never want to see a human but in the Province if you have rats you will have snakes.  You are stuck with them as long as you have a food source but be aware many cobras can spit venom and hit you from a good six ft away.  Pythons although not venomous have a nasty bite on them so be careful. 

I'm OK with snakes and seen a few here on Boracay and handled many throughout the World. They want to save their venom for their prey.  If anyone wants more information that could save a life I'd recommend joining this group.    https://web.facebook.com/groups/567981097251087

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Major Tom
Posted
Posted

Great to see to you here again Tommy!

Just one question:  is it better for you to be a landlubber than when you were able to sail on the open seas? 

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Colsie
Posted
Posted (edited)
On 10/14/2022 at 7:57 PM, Snowy79 said:

Cobras especially King Cobras are snake killers. The vast majority of snakes never want to see a human but in the Province if you have rats you will have snakes.  You are stuck with them as long as you have a food source but be aware many cobras can spit venom and hit you from a good six ft away.  Pythons although not venomous have a nasty bite on them so be careful. 

I'm OK with snakes and seen a few here on Boracay and handled many throughout the World. They want to save their venom for their prey.  If anyone wants more information that could save a life I'd recommend joining this group.    https://web.facebook.com/groups/567981097251087

My problem is that once they manage to get into our property there's a smogasbord of pet's and poultry that would clearly come under its "prey" category. Plus some stupid dogs and cats that would like to play with it... 

The usual trespasser is the Samar Cobra and I have no skills in handling snakes and thus removing them (unless they're dead, then it's easy). 

But if anyone has an easier solution for the removal of a highly venomous spitting cobra, I'm more than happy to try it, especially if it doesn't involve me going near it. 

The last snake was the sixth snake in the last few years to be removed the unpleasant way and almost bit the GF as she nearly stood on it by accident before jumping on top of table and started screaming for me...for some reason I have got the job of killing things. Damn the urgency of the situation bypassed my finely honed "not my problem" mechanism :tiphat:

Also, I doubt that there's anywhere near here that has antivenom. A wrong move and I could be one of the estimated 250 fatalities from snake bite in the Philippines each year. 

Edited by Colsie
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Dave Hounddriver
Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Colsie said:

she nearly stood on it by accident

I suspect you will find accidental stepping on cobras as the number one reason people get bit and die.   I lived in an area with many cobras for a few years and I noticed the locals take extreme care when walking in unfamiliar areas.  Me, I just got lucky and did not step on one.  Antivenom is seldom close enough to help.  Those I know of who were bitten died in about an hour.

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Snowy79
Posted
Posted
7 hours ago, Colsie said:

My problem is that once they manage to get into our property there's a smogasbord of pet's and poultry that would clearly come under its "prey" category. Plus some stupid dogs and cats that would like to play with it... 

The usual trespasser is the Samar Cobra and I have no skills in handling snakes and thus removing them (unless they're dead, then it's easy). 

But if anyone has an easier solution for the removal of a highly venomous spitting cobra, I'm more than happy to try it, especially if it doesn't involve me going near it. 

The last snake was the sixth snake in the last few years to be removed the unpleasant way and almost bit the GF as she nearly stood on it by accident before jumping on top of table and started screaming for me...for some reason I have got the job of killing things. Damn the urgency of the situation bypassed my finely honed "not my problem" mechanism :tiphat:

Also, I doubt that there's anywhere near here that has antivenom. A wrong move and I could be one of the estimated 250 fatalities from snake bite in the Philippines each year. 

Anti venum it only held in a few places but with the right first aid many casulties can be avoided. The best and safest way is to leave an exit route and spray water.

If there are that many snakes I'd seriously do your homework on the nearest available anti venom now rather than later, even a new born cobra can inject a lethal dose and they are more likely to, adults sometimes give dry bites as a warning.  

The first line of defence is always to make your property as snake proof as possible, block all entry holes, secure food away in sealed containers and generaly clean up around the area so there are no hiding places. Easier said than done I'm afraid.  

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hk blues
Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, Snowy79 said:

Anti venum it only held in a few places but with the right first aid many casulties can be avoided. The best and safest way is to leave an exit route and spray water.

If there are that many snakes I'd seriously do your homework on the nearest available anti venom now rather than later, even a new born cobra can inject a lethal dose and they are more likely to, adults sometimes give dry bites as a warning.  

The first line of defence is always to make your property as snake proof as possible, block all entry holes, secure food away in sealed containers and generaly clean up around the area so there are no hiding places. Easier said than done I'm afraid.  

Whilst it's good advice to check availability of anti venom now there is no guarantee of it being available when you need it.

Anyone who shops at Ace Hardware will confirm this!

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BrettGC
Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

Interesting question. They both have their pluses and minuses. 

At sea there was freedom, incredible bonding with nature, sometimes peace. There were moments of near terror (hurricanes, weather fronts, near misses by passing ships) and ecstasy. The old saw goes that sailing is, indeed a mixture of ecstasy and terror and sometimes in between. Nothing like catching fresh mahi mahi or yellowfin tuna, but how to eat 20 pounds of it or save it without a freezer? Anchoring in secluded coves and skinny dipping to bathe every day? Nothing like snorkeling or diving in remote areas. Visiting remote places like Easter Island, Pitcairn Island, Wallis Island, Kiribati and areas formerly excluded in French Polynesia due to nuclear testing was sublime.

On land, I sleep better and have air/con. The bed does not roll except in occasional earthquakes.  I don't worry about wind or storms coming up at 3am and dragging anchor. I don't worry about hitting submerged reefs or rocks when driving. I can go out and buy most supplies I might need or want on a moment's notice. There are some issues with noise and, of course, pigs, chickens, cows, goats and stray dogs, not to mention karaoke or just loud, silly radios. There is little privacy. There are house repairs and renovations and lots of landscaping (we are turning our property into a park!) ongoing but, I don't have to worry about yacht maintenance and repairs and, especially breakdowns in the middle of the ocean (which happened seriously once with broken engine and no wind hundreds of miles from nearest land). I can enjoy big winds, heavy rains and thunderstorms with impunity - except until recently when we had some serious roof leaks.

That's a super brief summary. But, in short, I am very happy to be on land now and look back with wonder and a bit of nostalgia, but not enough to want to do it again. Been there, done that, have many T-shirts. Cheeers!

Just out of curiosity, did you ever complete any "masters" qualifications?  I started in the navy and ended finished what is colloquially known as my "masters 2" (any waters, vessel less than 3000 gross tonnage) after I left even though I had no intention of driving ships/boats commercially.  I guess I did it more for my own knowledge and safety.  Probably overkill for a private skipper and the "3" (less than 500 tonnes) would have been more than sufficient but hey, I have it now.  

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