what do I do about snakes?

[furglasses]

I have so many questions... thats how new I am I hope Im not flooding the forums..

 

What do I do if Im in the woods and get bitten by a snake (assuming Im far from help)? I live in Tennessee and I know we have at least 2 or 3 poisonous snakes.. Is there an anti-venom I can buy over the counter?

If so... is there 1 for all bites and how much..

Thank you so much

furglasses

[+GreenMountainTreasureHunters]

What do I do if Im in the woods and get bitten by a snake (assuming Im far from help)? I live in Tennessee and I know we have at least 2 or 3 poisonous snakes.. Is there an anti-venom I can buy over the counter?

If so... is there 1 for all bites and how much..

 

Of course, ideally you want to avoid getting bitten by a snake in the first place. Be careful where you step, don't bother them, etc.

 

I don't think you can buy/carry anti-venom. The advice I've seen is to carry a Sawyer Extractor

http://www.sawyerproducts.com/sawyer_produ...actor/index.htm

 

It can be used to suck the venom out from the wound.

 

I've also seen advice to tie a band above the wound to slow the movement of venom to the rest of the body. But that appears to be controversial. You also need to immobilize the area, keep it below the level of your heart, and get medical help ASAP.

 

Hopefully you have a cell phone with service and you can call for medical help, or a friend who can help get you medical help quickly while you are immobilizing the bitten area!

[+Miragee]

Take a walking stick and use it to investigate any cache hiding place that might be harboring a snake before sticking your hand in there.

 

I have seen several snakes on my caching adventures including this one.

 

 

and this one who was calmly guarding the cache container.

 

 

Most snakes are not aggressive and just want to be left alone. If you use appropriate caution, you shouldn't need to worry about getting bit.

[+TrailGators]

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. So wear some trailgaiters whenever you are in snake territory:

[+cache_test_dummies]

I'm not an expert on snakes, but the following information (credited to Mike Andreasen from an August 1999 Tracker email list posting) that I found here might help ease your worries a bit (get it? a bit? ):

 

The following applies to snakes of North America.

 

1. You are not on the snake's menu. He is not going to strike you in order to eat you.

2. Even if you have so threatened the snake that he bites you, his venom is too slow acting to make a good defense. Anything can kill him even after being bitten.

3. The venom is valuable to the snake. It is after all, his next meal.

4. Only 1 in 5 snake bites results in the venom being injected.

5. Very few snake bites with venom injected result in death. Your biggest fear is fear itself.

6. Your next biggest fear is infection.

 

Given all the above, this is the best advice I can give: Stay Calm

 

If you can not get immediate help (i.e.; you are in the deep woods alone) put yourself in survival mode. This means the following priorities:

 

* Calmly locate or create a shelter.

* Insure that you have adequate water for 3 days.

 

Follow proper first aid for snake bite, including wound cleansing.

 

Basically, if venom is injected, you will be very sick for about 3 days. You will not feel like hunting water, shelter, or firewood after an hour or so (varies according to how excited you get and where bit).

 

If you move through the woods properly, you will probably not get bitten in the first place. The most snake bites are experienced by 10-12 year old boys, on the hand. Occurs when they try to pick the snake up. Second most is rock climbers, on the hand or face. Happens when they put their hand on, or stick their face over, a ledge the snake happens to be sunning on.

[+cache_test_dummies]

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. So wear some trailgaiters whenever you are in snake territory:

Great idea - better for the snakes to bite TrailGators than to bite me, I always say.

[furglasses]

wow, those look like some pretty mean snakes.. thanks for all the advice.

[+TrailGators]

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. So wear some trailgaiters whenever you are in snake territory:

Great idea - better for the snakes to bite TrailGators than to bite me, I always say.

Ha ha ha! They won't be biting me because I'll be riding my John Deere "Trail Gator!" (I wish I had one)

[+edscott]

The advice I've seen is to carry a Sawyer Extractor

http://www.sawyerproducts.com/sawyer_produ...actor/index.htm

 

That advise is probably from the manufacturer or marketer of these contraptions. Better off to carry a rabbit's foot in your pocket. Do some research. There's plenty of real data out there.

[furglasses]

So snake extractor or no ? How are you prepared?

[Donald, Daisy and Kids]

I have so many questions... thats how new I am I hope Im not flooding the forums..

 

What do I do if Im in the woods and get bitten by a snake (assuming Im far from help)? I live in Tennessee and I know we have at least 2 or 3 poisonous snakes.. Is there an anti-venom I can buy over the counter?

If so... is there 1 for all bites and how much..

Thank you so much

furglasses

 

AFAIK, antivenene (or antivenom) is usually specific to the creature that bites you, Ie: If you are bitten by a king brown snake then you need the antivenine which is manufactured from the venom of other brown snakes, if you are biten by a tiapan then you need a antivenine which is made from the venom from other tiapans.

 

This WIKI link has much more detailed info.

[+Thrak]

So snake extractor or no ? How are you prepared?

 

I should think you had plenty of responses to this question in THIS THREAD that you also started.........

[SuperSlugger6]

I have so many questions... thats how new I am I hope Im not flooding the forums..

 

What do I do if Im in the woods and get bitten by a snake (assuming Im far from help)? I live in Tennessee and I know we have at least 2 or 3 poisonous snakes.. Is there an anti-venom I can buy over the counter?

If so... is there 1 for all bites and how much..

Thank you so much

furglasses

There is nothing you can buy over the counter...if a snake comes up to you try to scare it away if it comes closer dont run...it will chase if the snake is a long distance away then you might want to start running. if you get bit b a snake then you might want to us your cell phone (if you have one) and call someone for help.

if not scream for help because there might be other people looking for the cach and they should probl help you..

 

Your Welcome so much ...

SuperSlugger6

[+KoosKoos]

Here were some good tips I found. I still don't buy the part about them always retreating as this fellow I ran into while looking for a cache yesterday was sure coming after me for quite a bit.

 

As I first saw him:

 

and after he turned around to chase me back:

 

http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/learning/junio...safesnake.phtml

 

Snakes do not prey on humans and they will not chase you, in fact they usually retreat or escape if given the opportunity. The danger comes when they are either surprised or cornered. Do not play around with a dead snake, they have been known to bite and envenomate. Get a good field guide and keep it handy especially in the field.

 

What to Do

If bitten,

 

1. Assume envenomation has occurred, especially if initial symptoms are present. Initial symptoms of pit viper bites include fang puncture marks; in addition, they almost always include immediate burning pain at the bite site, immediate and usually progressive local swelling within five minutes, as well as local discoloration of the skin. Initial symptoms of coral snake bites include tremors, slurred speech, blurred or double vision, drowsiness or euphoria and a marked increase in salivation within four hours; however, life-threatening effects from coral snake envenomation may not be evident for 24 hours or longer.

2. Identify the species of venomous snake that inflicted the bite, if possible, taking care to avoid another person being bitten. Identification is not necessary, but may be helpful.

3. Keep the victim as calm as possible. This helps reduce the spread of venom and the onset of shock.

4. Keep yourself and any other members of the group calm as well. This will help reassure the victim and ensure that the appropriate first-aid measures are followed, as well as preventing anyone else from becoming injured.

5. Know and be alert for the symptoms of shock, and institute the proper treatment should it ensue. Difficulty in breathing and/or kidney failure are frequent symptoms of envenomation.

6. Wash the bite area with a disinfectant if available.

7. Remove jewelry such as rings and watches, as well as tight-fitting clothes, before the onset of swelling.

8. Reduce or prevent movement of a bitten extremity, using a splint if possible; this helps decrease the spread of venom. For the same reason, position the extremity below the level of the heart.

9. Get the victim to a medical facility as soon as possible and begin treatment there with intravenous antivenom, crystalloid solutions and antibiotics. Antivenom treatment is generally most effective within the first four hours of envenomation, and is ineffective after 8-10 hours.

 

What NOT to Do

 

1. Do not make incisions over the bite marks. This can result in significant damage to already traumatized tissue, and can damage intact structures such as nerves and blood vessels, enhance bleeding caused by anticoagulant components of venom and increase the rapid spread of venom throughout the body if the circulatory system is compromised. A suction device, such as the Sawyer ExtractorTM, may be used without making any incisions. This device may remove significant quantities of venom, although its efficacy has yet to be conclusively determined.

2. Do not use a tourniquet or other constricting ban except in extreme cases of envenomation, and then only if properly trained in the technique. Such devices are of no value if applied more than thirty minutes after the bite, and if improperly used they can restrict blood vital blood flow to the traumatized tissue and possibly result in the amputation of an extremity. Unbearable pain can also result, and the improper loosening of such devices can allow sudden systemic absorption of venom.

3. Do not use cryotherapy (including cold compresses, ice, dry ice, chemical ice packs, spray refrigerants, and freezing) for the same reasons that the tourniquets should be avoided, and also because it can increase the area necrosis.

4. Do not use electroshock therapy, a method popularized following publication of a letter from a missionary in South America reporting its effectiveness in treating bites from snakes of uncertain identity. Several controlled clinical trials and at least one on humans have failed to demonstrate any positive result; moreover, the potential negative results from the uncontrolled use of an electric charge are obvious.

5. Do not drink alcohol, as it dilates blood vessels and increases absorption from the circulatory system, and thus helps spread venom faster.

6. Do not use aspirin or related medications to relieve pain, because they increase bleeding. A pain reliever not containing aspirin, however, may be used.

7. Do not use the pressure/immobilization technique, which consists of firmly wrapping the entire limb with an elastic bandage and then splinting, especially for pitviper bites. The theory behind this treatment is to confine the venom to the area of the bite until reaching a medical facility, but studies have shown the technique to be ineffective or worse with venoms which produce local swelling and tissue damage.

8. Do not administer antivenom in the field unless properly trained in the procedure, unless evacuation to a medical facility will take many hours or days, or unless envenomation has been extreme. Intramuscular or subcutaneous application of antivenom has proven to be much less effective, and in some cases ineffective, than intravenous administration. Acute allergic reactions to antivenom can occur, and contemplated field administration of antivenom should include provision for a sufficient supply of epinephrine (adrenalin) to counteract any such potential effects.

 

 

edit - to insert some picture captions

Edited October 8, 2007 by KoosKoos

[+displacedeerfan]

I whack 'em with a big stick. Sorry to the snake lovers but I don't share in your addiction.

[+GIDEON-X]

Hmmm, Don't know what to tell you that has not been said They do taste like CHICKEN!.................

[+Trucker Lee]

Koos Koos, nice pics of the coral snake. Where were you?

 

Folks, for those not in the know, there are several other species that mimic the colors, but if the red and yellow are adjacent, it is poisonous. Remember, red on yellow, kill a fellow, red on black, venom lack.

[+edscott]

Yes Coral snakes have a relatively agressive venom but their delivery system is not as efficient as other poisonous snakes in N. America. I would love to have been close enough to get those photos.

[+cache_test_dummies]

Folks, for those not in the know, there are several other species that mimic the colors, but if the red and yellow are adjacent, it is poisonous. Remember, red on yellow, kill a fellow, red on black, venom lack.

I'm not 'in the know'. But I do know that if I encounter a snake that looks anything at all like the snake in KoosKoos pictures, especially if it pursues me, I'll be too busy running away and changing my pants to consider reciting clever little rhymes, or thinking about the order of the colors.

[furglasses]

that snake is spooky;halloween snake..

[+Thrak]

Hmmm, Don't know what to tell you that has not been said They do taste like CHICKEN!.................

 

Yes, they do sort of taste like chicken. I've eaten rattlesnake a number of times. When I lived in the hills we would wrap them in foil with butter and some soy sauce and cook them by the fire. It was MEAT and we didn't get a lot of that.... We just called it terykaki snake. It was pretty good.

[+KoosKoos]

Koos Koos, nice pics of the coral snake. Where were you?

 

Folks, for those not in the know, there are several other species that mimic the colors, but if the red and yellow are adjacent, it is poisonous. Remember, red on yellow, kill a fellow, red on black, venom lack.

 

I was in the wonderful Barton Creek Greenbelt in Austin...attempting to find this cache:

 

Charlie's Greenbelt Cache

 

It was a fantastic day of caching. 6 hours of leisurely strolling through the woods for some great views, nature, and just relaxation. And a numerous 9 smilies!!! Thanks goodness for old fashioned numbers runs!!!