Note: some of the links provided in the following article may require you to be a member of the National Snakebite Support Facebook group to open. I highly recommend that everyone become a member of this group.
In episode 302 my wife, Sam, and I joined Nick to discuss our experience when our 10 month old puppy, Puna, was bit by a Prairie Rattlesnake in South Dakota. One thing we didn't mention is that identifying the species of snake is NOT IMPORTANT as all pit viper envenomations are treated with the same antivenin. The only CAVEAT to this, is if your are hunting where coral snakes may be present, coral snake envenomations have a slightly varied treatment protocol and receive a different antivenin. There are three species of coral snakes in the United States:
"Micruroides euryxanthus, the Arizona (or Sonoran) coral snake, is found in Arizona and western New Mexico.Â
Micrurus tener, the Texas coral snake, is found in Texas, southern Arkansas, and western Louisiana.Â
Micrurus fulvius, Eastern coral snake, can be found in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, far eastern Louisiana, Georgia, and North and South Carolina." ("Coral snake envenomations", Spencer Greene, MD, MS, FACEP, FACMT, July 10, 2018)
In the episode we discussed how a proper First Aid kit should be a part of your season/trip preparation. Nick discussed dog First Aid with Mark Olcott in episode 99 and I shared the inventory list in a blog post here.
We discussed National Snakebite Supportâ„¢ (NSS), which "is a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to connecting snakebite victims, pet owners, and healthcare providers with experts who practice and promote evidence-based snakebite management." They have a website and, perhaps more importantly, their Facebook group that functions similar to the Poison Control hotline but for snake bites. I'd like to highlight a few specific resources they have available:
Dog and Cat Pre-Hospital Snake Bite Management for Pit Viper Envenomations with a downloadable PDF file here.
Dog and Cat In-Hospital Snake Bite Management for Pit Viper Envenomations with a downloadable PDF file here.
NSS Veterinary Treatment Algorithm and Supplemental Information for Pit Viper Envenomations with a downloadable PDF file here.
What I have personally laminated and included in my First Aid kit is the PDF file that combines all 3 of the above documents into one, located on their Facebook group here.
They have similar information for human envenomations: Pre-Hospital and In-Hospital.
NSS FAQ here
Of course, our biggest challenge was trying to find the antivenin. Online resources for locations should be approached with a healthy dose of skepticism since we know that its very expensive and has a relatively short shelf-life. Here are a couple of resources that may be helpful:
When people hear our story, one of the most common questions is whether Puna was vaccinated and whether the vets recommended that we get the rattlesnake vaccine. The short answer is that she was not and the official recommendation of NSS and the American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) that they do NOT recommend the rattlensnake vaccine. Read the NSS statement here, the AAHA statement here on page 9 and here, and Asclepius Snakebite Foundation statement here.
Another frequent point of discussion is snake avoidance training. NSS DOES recommend this and you can read why here.
We also discussed why it seems like very few vets are informed on how to properly treat snakebitten dogs and NSS has an opinion on that as well, which you can read here.
While we didn't discuss it as part of the episode, I'd also like to point out that we do have pet insurance for Puna. Our policy has an unlimited annual payout, 90% coverage, and a $250 deductible. The total cost of treatment for Puna was $2131.23 of which $1268.56 was reimbursed from insurance, meaning that insurance covered about 60% of the cost. I created a Pet Insurance fact sheet that includes a financial breakdown and analysis of this incident here.
Lastly, we shared our story not because we want to instill fear in people but rather we want every one that has the pleasure and companionship of a great hunting dog to actually be prepared in case the worst occurs. Remember: no one can or will advocate for your dog the same way you can.