Rattlesnake bites!!!

**rebel_chick** · 08-30-2009, 08:17 PM

I was told that if your horse got bite by a rattlesnake that you could put mud on it and I would help draw the poison out and keep it cool. Horses aren't particularly reactive to snake bites but was wondering if anyone else heard of this?

**wareagle69** · 08-30-2009, 08:37 PM

horses are usually fine when bitten, just the sheer size alone,from most viper bites, now if bite by a cobra maybe differnt story, but as far as the rattleheadedcoppermoccisans they are usually fine bareing any health issues, wanna know the problem that kills the horses and cattle

horse; just grazing along minding my onw buisness chewing some tender blades
snake; holy crap whats that big vibration coming towards me, maybe i'll make some noise
horse; hmm wonder what that noise is, maybe i should sniff it, see if its edible
snake; look dude can't you hear me?
horse; ooh look at that blade of grass by the noisy thing, just a little nibble
snake; ok i warned ya. strike.
horse; jumps back in surprise, hey what the... that hurt. wonder what that was, maybe i'll take a closer look
snake; ok but i'm gonna bite again.

it's not the first bite but these big critters can be so dumb sometimes, 2 or 3 bites can be fatal, and usually because they are bite on the nose and the airway closes, which is why horsefolks in snake country carry a rubber tube, so they can shove it down the horses nose and keep an open airway

**pocomoonskyeyes** · 08-30-2009, 08:57 PM

Having given lectures in a Serpentarium I would like to throw my two cents in. Owl Girl is absolutely Right. Only this isn't new, it's about 15 or twenty years old. It saddens me how long some of this Medical treatment stuff takes to "get out". Crash there's a man down your way Maynard something or something Maynard, Sorry but I may be getting oldtimers. He is an expert in Snakebites. He came out with these treatment guidelines back around 1990 or maybe a few years earlier. This is the advice we gave out at the Swamp when I worked there from 1990-1994.
Another reason you DON'T want to suck the venom out. Every time you brush your teeth or eat a potato chip you scratch your gums. So if you've been bitten on the arm and you suck the venom out you have effectively transferred the venom from your arm to your mouth. You don't have to be a doctor to realize you have just made the situation even worse.

Now as to what FVR said about the Coral snake which is the most venomous snake in the US. If it scratches your skin with it's front teeth and it has released venom in it's mouth. Then it doesn't matter where it's Fangs are located,you have just been "envenomated", you now have Coral Snake Venom in your bloodstream. Coral Snakes are related to Cobras and this should give you an idea of how serious they can be.
One more thing for those who are in a Survival scenario The deeper you can bury the head the better off you are. Why? Let's say you bury it and a Raccoon comes along and digs it up a week later and you step on it. you need to treat it as if the snake were alive and just bit you. The venom crystallizes and even a year later is still potent enough to harm you. When your liquid blood mixes with the crystallized venom, it liquefies it and mixes and enters your bloodstream. Just so you know.

**Deep South** · 08-30-2009, 09:04 PM

I thought I had......

**crashdive123** · 08-30-2009, 09:06 PM

Nope. You didn't. Just follow the link I gave you and you'll see what I mean.

**Ole WV Coot** · 08-30-2009, 09:25 PM

My part of the country mostly copperheads and rattlers depending on your location. I still have the habit of blousing my pants and Carharts, not the ones made in China turned one rattler without getting to my skin. Bitten one time by a copperhead and only got sick to my stomach, probably had used most of his venom up already. Really never did anything for coon hounds they just swelled up for a few days and got better. I guess prevention is the best. I know of only one death in Northern VA where I once lived, a 6yr old girl bitten by a copperhead. Bites are few and far between in this area most everyone knows where to watch and copperheads can be smelled by a human, smells like cucumbers.

**pocomoonskyeyes** · 08-30-2009, 09:29 PM

Originally Posted by Ole WV Coot

My part of the country mostly copperheads and rattlers depending on your location. I still have the habit of blousing my pants and Carharts, not the ones made in China turned one rattler without getting to my skin. Bitten one time by a copperhead and only got sick to my stomach, probably had used most of his venom up already. Really never did anything for coon hounds they just swelled up for a few days and got better. I guess prevention is the best. I know of only one death in Northern VA where I once lived, a 6yr old girl bitten by a copperhead. Bites are few and far between in this area most everyone knows where to watch and copperheads can be smelled by a human, smells like cucumbers.

You are right Coot the people at highest risk of death are the very young and the older people,whose Immune system has either not fully developed or has started to break down.

**pocomoonskyeyes** · 08-30-2009, 09:36 PM

I just remembered!!! Maynard Cox is the name of the Snakebite expert.

**Deep South** · 08-30-2009, 09:41 PM

There ya go Crash..... I was wondering if anyone has or heard of anyone using hydocortazone to slowdown the affects of a bite.. My vet swears by it for dogs and I have used benadryl successfully a few times for both water mocs and ground rattlers.. The swelling on the dogs goes down within 45 min ... Compared to days without treatment. I thought it was pretty impressive the amount of time it took for the swelling to go down. Just hoping it would work on a human similarly at least slow down the sickness that's going to happen.