Are you Ready for A Snake Bite?

Click here to read the complete article
242 – June, 2021

By Caroline Coile

Every once in a while, I’ve done something smart. In this case, it was joining a Facebook group called National Snakebite Support group last year. Staffed by more than 30 experts in snake bite treatment, they are there to walk you through both human and veterinary snake bite cases. As a member, you can follow along on cases–making sure to never, ever comment, as that would be a distraction—and learn the rights and wrongs of snake bite treatment.

I had been following such posts vicariously for about a year when one Sunday afternoon one of my Salukis, Mecca, walked in the house with her entire face slathered in blood. I admit I was so surprised I screamed out loud. I rushed her to the shower to try to wash her off, but she was in too much pain to let me do much. But at least I could see her skin now, and instead of the giant gash from a raccoon or feral hog I’d been expecting, all I saw was a few tiny scrapes. Regardless, she was in obvious pain and needed an emergency visit to the vet.

By the time I’d called the vet and reported bleeding from an unknown cause, and started driving down the road, she’d had projectile diarrhea (twice) and vomited (twice). A snakebite worked its way to the top of my list—I see a few timber rattlers and eastern diamondbacks in the yard every year—so I turned around to shut the rest of the dogs in the house lest I return to more of the same.

From my time spent on the list I knew that while time was of the essence, she probably was not going to die en route, even though it was an hour-long trip. I knew there was really no first-aid I should be doing, and I knew what I needed my vet to do once we arrived. Some vets are more versed than others, and I was beyond relieved when my vet told me his treatment plan, which matched that of the NSS: Start an IV, do bloodwork, start IV pain meds, start antivenom. (By the way, “antivenom” and “antivenin” are basically synonyms, although technically antivenin is the subclass of antivenom used to treat snake bites).

Click here to read the complete article
242 – June, 2021

Short URL: http://caninechronicle.com/?p=203179

Posted by AnthonyA on Jun 15 2021. Filed under Current Articles, Featured. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.