City issues rattlesnake warning

Walter is friendly little guy, young and curious.

So when he noticed the rattlesnake slithering at the edge of the trail in Beattie Park on Sunday, Walter did what comes naturally. He waddled closer, nose first, to say hello.

“Poor Walter,” said City Councilwoman Cecilia Martner. “He got bit.”

The 2-year-old basset hound, who belongs to Martner’s stepson, Clayton Gudeman, 24, came home Monday night from the emergency veterinarian’s office in Arroyo Grande, but it will be about a week before the snake venom works its way through Walter’s system, Martner said.

“The thing just bit him in the nose,” she said. “The side of his head is swollen; one eye is shut. He drools. He has no control over his mouth.

“He’s going to be all right. He is going to be OK.”

After Walter’s introduction to Lompoc’s wild side, warning signs are being posted at city parks, said Lompoc Urban Forester Cindy McCall.

“Additional signage is being posted to alert park patrons to the presence of rattlesnakes, as well as other snakes in our urban interface parks,” she said.

Signs are being posted in Beattie, River, Riverbend, Ken Adam and Briarcreek Parks, the East West Bike Trail and Riverbend Multipurpose Trail, she said.

Gudeman was walking along the trail with Walter lumbering along behind. Gudeman walked past the snake without seeing it, then looked back and saw the confrontation. He grabbed Walter by the tail, pulled him out of harm’s way, and carried the 65-pound hound up the hill to their home.

“The vet said if Walter had been a smaller dog, the snake bite would have killed him,” Martner said.

The snake was large, about 11⁄2-inch in circumference, she said.

According to the veterinarian, about 20 dogs a year in the Lompoc Valley are bitten by snakes and many of them die, Martner said. Snakes are most active in April and October, feeding on rodents, small birds, eggs and reptiles, which are common in Lompoc, McCall said.

McCall cautioned residents, saying that a snake’s only defense is its bite, so people should be careful, be alert, keep pets on a leash, and avoid headphones and cell phones to avoid being distracted while walking in the parks.

McCall offered the following tips as well:

• Keep children close at hand; stay on the trail and avoid walking on trails at night.

• If you encounter a rattlesnake, remain calm and back away quietly. “Children, teenagers and pets are curious and bold. It is best to have them walk behind you with another adult behind them,” McCall said. “Be aware that the snake does not always warn you with its rattle. If it is mating, shedding, giving birth, has lost or damaged its rattle; warnings do not occur.”.

• If a person or pet is bitten, remain calm and still. Rapid movement, heart rate and panic increase the spread of venom. Stay calm, immobilized and get to a hospital or veterinarian as quickly as possible. Keep the bite lower than the heart. Elevating the bite increases circulation and the venom will spread more rapidly.

• Do not put a tourniquet on a limb bitten by a snake. Cutting, sucking or draining snakebites have not been proven to work and are not advised.

• Never pick up an apparently dead rattlesnake. It could be resting deeply, simply not moving, and it can bite reflexively.

Visit local parks and trails, but use caution and stay alert, McCall said.

“We live in a magnificent part of the country; we must remember rattlesnakes, mountain lions and other predators live here, too. Please, leave your iPod, Walkman or other music device at home so you can use the best weapon you have, your ears.”

As for Walter, Martner said, he loves a good parade, and he’ll be fully recovered in plenty of time to ride in this summer’s Flower Festival Parade.