are venomous creatures immune to their own venom? how?

Question

like snakes for example

i just saw a king cobra eat a grass snake on NGC .. after it injects the latter with venom .. so, the dead snake is digested, but what happens to the venom?
if the venom in the dead snake comes in contact with the live snakes blood, say through some internal injury to the live snake, will it die too?

Answer 1

Venom is dangerous only when it enters the blood vessels of its own body or of another creature.The extent of damage depends on the venom that goes in and the size of the attacked creature.The venom that enters the food path is generally digested provided the path is free from wounds/injuries.

Answer 2

Venom can only be dangerous to an organism if it enters it blood stream. The venomous snakes do not contain venom in their blood. They had venom glands which inject venom into the prey. When they consume another poisonous creature, then its poison is digested by the digestive system of snake (because venoms are proteins). But if a venomous snake is biten by another poisonous organism, then it will die.

Answer 3

Venomous animals are not immune to the venom they produce.
With reference to snake let me tell you that venom is produced by the parotid gland(one of the salivary glands).It is directly squirted into the deepest part of the wound caused by the insertion of the needle-like fang(modified maxillary tooth).The venom contains some enzymes and toxins.
If a prey is killed by injecting venom and the swallowed, then in the stomach the venom along with the prey is subjected to digestion by the digestive enzymes of the snake.
Digestion means biochemical breakdown of large molecules into the small ones.So, the effect of venom gets nullified. But if the same venom got directly into the blood stream then there would a serious reaction in terms antigen-antibody reaction or some toxic effects on the nervous system etc. This might be fatal to the animal itself

Answer 4

No, cobras can kill each other with their own venom.

The stomach acid actually breaks down the venom in the digestive system but any flesh bite will kill.

The King snake is the only snake immune to snake venom.

Answer 5

Snakes are not immune to their own venom. But, an interesting point to make is that: in most species, venom is harmless if ingested, but if the venom is injected into some tissue it is toxic and the tissue around the site of injection and other parts of the body will suffer one way or another.

Answer 6

Well, the venom isn't part of the animal's vital systems, or anything, so you can take out an animal's venom glands and it won't have any direct ill-effect on that creature. As for the antivenin itself being harmful to the animal, I find that also doubtful. They bind to and neutralize venom, they don't actively cause things to happen. Plus, the antivenin itself will only last so long before it's flushed from the system, so once it's gone, the crature will still be making venom like before.

Answer 7

snake venom is nothing but highly concentrated protein it is surprising to know that human beings do not die if they drink snake venom 'cos the proteins r digested .it becomes a poison only when it is injected directly into our blood stream as they accumulate and prevent blood flow thus even 4 venomous creatures d venom is poison only if it is injected in their blood stream by biting one another...

Answer 8

It is interesting to analyse your question chemical composition wise. Every venom is a protein. The snakes venom is a protein in its composition and it is poison to any other animal basically because that protein is not available in victims body. where as that protein is secretion of snake and that protein is very much available in snake's body. as a result of which venomous creature need not become immune to its own poison rather it is composition of their own body protein. In a nutshell, a protein which is not in the composition of their body becomes a poison or venom.

Answer 9

Usually not.
Venom is kept in very special grands, and remains there. The venom does not go anywhere but in the intended victim.
When it goes in the blood is where trouble begins, as the stuff is not meant to be in blood, including theirs.
Here is a rather extreme: could one take one's excrement and turn that into some 'soup' and inject it in one's blood without ill effect?

Answer 10

Some are, I think, but most aren't...scorpions when they mate have to interlock tails so they don't actually sting and kill each other. I don't believe snakes are immune to their own venom because they have the capacity to kill each other. Normally the predators of venemous animals are immune or resistant to their toxins. I actually can't think of an animal that's immune to it's own venom off the top of my head.