Category Archives: Herp Attacks

CORPUS CHRISTI — Sadie’s stubby, liver-colored tail wiggled with feverish excitement as she bounded from the dog box in the back of the Suburban.

A hundred yards away, another more sinister tail was lying in wait.

Our year-old German shorthair pup exhibited the usual tendencies that a squirming toddler would, inspecting every nook and cranny of her new surroundings and having a whale of a time relishing all the subtle nuances. There were basketball-size shocks of bunchgrass that held at least one small covey of bobwhites and two more jackrabbits that were sent scurrying by a prying nose and prancing paws.

Every bounding stride seemed to bring more dazzling sights and sounds to the wide-eyed pup, and after she tired of frantically sending grasshoppers fluttering skyward, it was time to get down to business at the bird dog club lease.

She had to track down the real quarry she was here to locate.

Fitted with a thicker collar than usual attached to a lead line, Sadie was passed off to veteran West Texas dog trainer Ray Grappe, who proceeded to walk her over to an undisturbed clump of shinery that had a special surprise she never had laid eyes on or caught a whiff of.

Nosing curiously up to the clump of brush, Sadie peeked in to see what odd creature was making such a ruckus and got a jolt. However, the charge that sent her reeling skyward wasn’t a bite from the peeved 4-foot western diamondback rattler that remained coiled securely in a menacing ball of muscle, the only clue to its authenticity the pulsating rattles resonating near and far. The real culprit was the electronic training collar draped around her neck, the device registering enough of an impact to make the dog think that the bad boy in the bushes was what actually dished out the harm.

The trainer helped calm Sadie down and allowed her to regain her composure after what had been a trying few seconds. Typically, it only takes one good dose of electric current to hammer the point home that snakes — the mere sight or smell of them are bad — but just for good measure Grappe led Sadie over to a different concealed rattler and doled out a repeat lesson.

After calming her down the second time, Sadie wouldn’t even look at the first snake, much less go near it when led by, keeping at least 10 feet clear of the alarming animal.

Lesson learned.

“Snake-proofing” is the easiest and most successful way to keep a dog’s nose out of places it shouldn’t be, specifically clear of critters that can leave more than just a mark. It’s also great insurance to not only keep your pooch healthy and hunting but also to help avoid large costs associated with antivenom treatments.

Most bird dog clubs across the state offer snake-proofing clinics at some point during the year, while bird dog breeders and trainers often offer the service multiple times during snake season, including in the spring when serpents first become fully active and into the fall when hunting dogs are set to hit the field.

However, the lessons learned in these settings don’t just apply to hunting breeds, and more often than not if you attend a snake-proofing seminar, you’ll see house dogs of all shapes and sizes.

Any canine living in our state is susceptible to the four basic categories of venomous snakes: coral snakes, copperheads, cottonmouths and most of all rattlesnakes, specifically the western diamondback. The western diamondback’s range includes all of the state except for the eastern portion of the Pineywoods and the northern edge of the Panhandle, making it the No. 1 threat to our canine companions for a solid eight to nine months.

While snake-proofing is one form of great insurance for your dogs, another comes in the form of a vaccine developed and approved for nationwide use in 2004 by Woodland, Calif.-based biomedical company Red Rock Biologics. Red Rock’s rattlesnake vaccine specifically was developed to combat the effect of western diamondback venom, which has a huge range in the southwestern United States, including Arizona and California.

However, the vaccine also has shown success in buying time for dogs bitten by other venomous snakes, a fate that even a decade ago meant almost certain death if a canine was hit with a hot dose of venom with no immediate medical help available.

Marty Janway of Red Rock Biologics said that the company’s vaccine success has been buoyed by a need for preventive care by a growing segment of dog owners. She said that the vaccine developed to reduce pain, swelling and tissue damage in the event of western diamondback envenomations also works well in dealing with bites from snakes that dole out similar toxins.

“As far as our target niche, it’s basically any dog that lives, works, plays or hunts in any areas where they’re going to be exposed to rattlesnakes or copperheads,” she said. “It works well with most of the rattlesnakes in the U.S. It also works well with copperheads.

“There’s a few snakes it doesn’t work well with. It doesn’t work against coral snakes at all. It does not work against the water moccasin. It also is poor against the eastern diamondback. It does help a little tiny bit, but not very much.”

Janway said there are more than 4,000 clinics nationwide that carry the vaccine, including more than 1,000 in Texas.

“The vaccine stimulates the dog to produce its own antibodies so he has the equivalent of two to three vials of anti-venom on board at the time of a bite,” she said. “The antibodies last about six months, so depending on what your snake season is will depend on how often you booster.

“In Texas, we would just recommend that you guys just do a standard booster every six months. And ideally you need to start it at least 60 days before a dog would be exposed because depending on the size of the dog it takes 60 to 90 days — it’s 30 days after their last shot is when they have their maximum immunity.”

Considering that anti-venom treatments can run hundreds of dollars per vial and even then aren’t always readily available in some locales, the price charged per vaccine from a licensed veterinarian is well worth the minor expense. The vaccine only is available through licensed vets, and most charge between $20 and $30 for each dose.

Hidden dangers come with the territory for hunting dogs and other canines, but thanks to a pair of preventive measures, the lurking anxiety loses most of its bite.

In the case of electronic collar training, it sure beats the alternative jolt.

NEW TAMPA – A young boy had a terrifying experience Friday evening when he was bitten by a pygmy rattlesnake.

Jacob Hyatt, 8, was playing in a field near his home in north Hillsborough County when he picked up a rock. Rescue crews say that’s where the snake was hiding.

People who live nearby say this isn’t the first time a poisonous snake has been spotted in the area. Yvonne Canfield has become somewhat of a snake expert. She does everything she can to rid the neighborhood of the rattlesnakes.

“I killed one myself with a shovel on our porch,” she said. “It was just lucky that I saw it. Our neighbors have killed two, my husband has killed two or three. This is all within the last couple of weeks.”

Canfield says she keeps a shovel near her door just in case she has to defend herself. Friday afternoon, she watched as the ambulance raced past her house to treat Hyatt.

“I did see them wheel him out of the house,” she said. “He was very, very pale. His parents were very concerned of course.”

Hyatt was rushed to University Community Hospital, where his mother explained to doctors what happened. She told them her son was trying to get a rope stuck in a tree. He wanted to stand on a rock to get higher. When he moved the rock, he found the snake hiding underneath.

Neighbors say these poisonous snakes are everywhere. That may be because the entire subdivision is surrounded by woods and pastures.

“In the past month I’ve seen like two rattlesnakes, about a half a foot [each],” said Jordan Sierra, 12.

Some parents are so worried that they’ve put special restrictions on their kids to help keep them from being bitten. They won’t let them leave the house without shoes on and they can forget about wearing flip-flops.

“The kids are warned constantly,” said Canfield. “They have to keep shoes on their feet. They can’t reach into a bush.”

The children say they’re very conscious about watching where they step or what they’re reaching into.

“It freaks me out sometimes,” said Sierra. “You’ve got to be safe.”

Children in the neighborhood have already started making “get well soon” cards for Hyatt. They’re wishing him a speedy recovery all while knowing it could have been any of them.

“This has put a good scare into them,” said Canfield.

A poisonous snake bit a 45-year-old man while he was strolling by an Orlando hotel pool.

The Orlando Sentinel reports that the man was bitten on his left ankle by a cottonmouth water moccasin at about 5 p.m. Monday at the JW Marriott Grande Lakes resort in south Orange County. The species is common in and around wetlands in the Southeast, the paper reports.

The man – Eric Geisman, 45, of Rhode Island – was in the intensive-care unit at a local hospital, the paper says. He was in stable condition as of Tuesday evening, but the Sentinel says that his family “was not certain about his prognosis.”

“He’s in a lot of pain. We’re not sure what to expect,” said his sister-in-law, Lynn Arruda of Orlando.

The man was bitten while he and his wife were on a walking path near the hotel’s pool and herb garden; he had stepped on the snake, the story says. His left leg became swollen, and about an hour later, he was rushed by ambulance to the hospital.

A fire crew later captured and killed the roughly 2 1/2-foot-long, snake and took it to the hospital, the story says. Geisman by mid-day Tuesday received two doses of anti-venom.

The JW Marriott hotel’s general manager, Jim Burns, was not immediately available for comment, the paper says.