Hi Vlad, a good snake hook is important and as you have said should be good for flipping too! Also I was reading about a young couple out walking on Lesvos and feral dogs attacked them, so I will feel safer with a strong snake hook in my hand.


Thanks,
Tony
 

How could i have missed them crazy stray dogs?!!?

Oh well, as a man inhabiting a city with a few hundred thousands(!)feral dogs in , that bite over 10.000 persons per year(!) i must say that all herpers doing their thing in or around human settlements should carry some protection.

Beside the trusty and multipurpose snakehook used to crack open their skulls i also carry a pepper spray. Never underestimate the power of a 5+ pack of angry mutts. People were killed over here. Some of them were eaten to the bone!

Safety advice: NEVER provoke the dogs (talking doesn`t calm them down all the time and looking in their eyes can backfire), and ALWAYS be prepared to defend yourself.

P.S. I like DOMESTIC dogs, big or small, and i am not afraid of them. And dogs that have owners like me back. :) FERAL dogs that live in packs and HUNT for their food are the real problem.


 

These dogs are really a problem, cf. e.g.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7949181.stm 

Staying healyhy is the beginning, one tiny insect which can give you big problems later is the tick.
When herping I meet a lot of this "friends".
Preventing is good, but always check your body, or have it checked by a friend.
When bitten romove the tick in a way nothing stays behind and try to keep it in one peace, always write down the date and place you were bitten and check this area regularly, when a red ring appears around it you should go to the "medicine mann" nearby.
Lyme diseas is something you do not want.