Posted on 09/22/2007 11:18:58 AM PDT by girlangler
Well we live right in the middle of the city, but I’ve seen plenty of non venomous snakes in my garden, so I’ll watch for the little rattlers. Maybe I’ll get a photo. I’m way more worried about the dogs getting ahold of one of those nasty cane toads here. They are the bane of my existence.
susie
Then there was the one about the two friends hiking in remote backcountry when one stepped off the trail to take a leak......”The doctor says you’re gonna die,” his friend told him sadly.
Just be careful eating rattlers. Make sure they are a clean kill. If they bit themselves in the throes of death, you can't eat them. Best to separate their heads quickly and cleanly.
Shelley's foot was puffed up - the bitten toe looked like a banana - but there was no fluid to drain out, just general swelling. It was excruciatingly painful, and ice did no good at all.
She stayed overnight at the vet with a mild sedative for the pain, Benadryl, antibiotics, and a saline drip to wash the poison out of her system. The swelling was completely gone in 24 hours, she didn't even limp.
Next time she turns up with a swelling like that, I'll ladle her full of Benadryl first thing!
Are black boy and light green boy REALLY naughty?
Did I tell you that I almost got a free dog, but dodged the bullet?
The real word, antivenin, is almost forgotten today. Language is very often shaped by sheer stupidity.
No, the Mojave Green is a type of rattlesnake, but unlike the Western Diamondback, the Mojave green is territorial,..that means he might actually come out of his hole and chase you if you are in his territory.
Marines up at 29 Palms used to hunt them down because they would fetch $200/copy when you turned them over to the medical authorities so they could develop antivenom for them.
You’re right about that! I use a machete to cleanly and safely remove the head. If anyone cares, here is an easy way to tan a rattlesnake skin:
Slit up the belly from rattles to neck then peel the skin off and pour rock salt all over the fleshy underside.
Stretch the skin out and tack it fleshy side out on a board for a couple of days until it is dry. Then untack the skin from the board and rub the salted fleshy side across the top of a wooden sawhorse or other secure board, back and forth for about 20 minutes or so until the fibers in the skin break down and begin to look like suede. You are done, that is all there is to it!
I just took out a Western diamondback last week that kept returning to the back porch of an elderly woman. Only about 18” long, 4 buttons, so small. Not like the grandaddies we used to kill in the Colorado river bottom hiding in the irrigation Pipe south of Austin. Those were a good 8 ft long and thicker than your forearm. Rattles were over 12 and had been broken off. One of many.
Just checked out your homepage. Re: the blue snake, I think this site will provide the info about your shy “friend” - http://www.oplin.org/snake/fact%20pages/racer_blue/racer_blue.html
Good to know,..the one we took out fell victim to a falling stick and bit itself in the throes of its demise. Nothing would eat it afterwards.
A bit of borax doesn’t hurt.
I would be scared to death. That is one snake I do not want to meet up with.
Noooo you have to be careful, because it’s so easy to get another dog! ;)
Yes, the boys are pretty naughty. Actually, one is spending the night on a trial basis with a potential new owner. We’ll see if he’s too naughty to go live there!
It’s funny, the girl always waits to go outside to potty. The boys, not so much! Kind of like humans, I think the boys grow up a little slower. I would love to keep light green, but unfortunately he’s missing 2 important parts! He has a really cool personality, I would love to do obedience with him.
I remember walking along a Japanese stormwater drainage channel under construction back in ‘82 at Fuji, about a mile from nearest soul. Grunts hated patroling that area, because the snakes would drop out of trees on top of you and scare the Dickens out of you.
I walked along the channel, about 20 feet with knee high grass about 15 feet from the same treeline, when I thought i saw something move in the grass ahead of me, thinking, Ya know, this would be a great place for snakes. So I decided to turn around and follow the channel back. As I turned around 5 snakes turned from within about 3 feet from where I had been walking and went back towards the trees.
These were cute ones. Pit Viper looking heads, as thick as your forearm, green western diamondback type back pattern, with yellow underbelly, but short, maybe 24” long each.
Just the kind of snake that would really get you excited when they dropped on you as you patrolled under the jungle canopy.
I always wondered why they called it anti-venin. I’m sure it means something. And, oft times it’s not stupidity, it’s trying to remember what one heard. To most, Anti-Venom makes more sense than Anti-Venin. I would save pointing the finger and crying stupidity for really stupid things, not mistakes made in good faith. Now I’m off to dictionary.com.
susie
Oh my!! So you were bitten by a copperhead? They really itch, doen’t they?
Thank you. Looks exactly like the one I saw. A very pretty snake. We also saw one at the Morikami Japanese Garden. They are VERY fast! Hence the name I suppose.
susie
Not me, just my dogs. They didn’t mention it itching. All 3 just swelled some and acted a little *down* for awhile. Of course, that might have been the benedryl.
susie
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