With teal season coming up, there is a good chance one of us will have a dog get bit by a cotton mouth (aka water mocassin). I ran into two at my lease last weekend.

My questions is, what is the correct protocol if this happens? Should you stop your hunt and head to the vet? Is just rest needed?

My dog had the rattlesnake vaccine and has been to the avoidance classes, but I still don't trust that he can avoid snakes when he's charging through the marsh at full speed.

Advice is appreciated. I want everyone to feel prepared should this happen.

If you value your dog I would recommend a quick trip to the vet immediately after a snake bite.

Even if the bite is dry, you can still have infections set in.

Maybe any advice other than the obvious, like ice the wound, use a venom extractor, or something along those line. Even still, after that you would obviously take you dog to the vet.

If it were my dogs and I was sure it was a cottonmouth I would simply keep am eye on the dog, feed 25 mg benedryl and watch the airway. Take the dog home and put it to bed. Cittonmouths are not too bad on the bigger dogs. I dang sure will not pay a vet for what I can do myself.

The rattlesnake vaccination is not a cure all approach to do nothing. It is designed to lessen the severity of the bite and buy you more time to seek medical help. Benedryl is a safe bet and will likely be one of the meds a licensed vet will prescribe.
But to answer your question, if your dog is an important part of your life I'd seek trained medical help. If not, keep on hunting and hope for the best.

One of my dogs was snake biten a couple of months ago. I'm not sure what type of snake but I live on a creek with plenty to choose from. He felt bad for a couple of days and re-bounded just fine. I've had other dogs biten in the past, never had any serious repercussions. But, never a rattlesnake, which I think would warrant a trip to the vet, even though I do vaccinate for the rattler.

Ditto

Wal,

I heard it was 1mg per lb. for the bendadryl.. Is that right?

I guess my first reation would be to head for the vet, but really know nothing about water mocassins. Must be a significant difference between them and a rattler? Anyone have details on the differences?

ones a a lot worse than the other

the vaccine does not provide protection against cottonmouths, copperheads yes

I asked my vet how much benadryl I could give my 42 lbs brittany and he told me I could give him 2- 25mg tablets.

I have given this much to a pit bull that had bee stings and the swelling and hives almost immediatley reversed. He was back to normal in a few hours.

I found a vet here in the Dallas yesterday. Needed to get a rabies shot for my pup. I asked him about the snake vaccine, and he said he doesn't give it because it isn't necessary. Apparently he worked in an emergency clinic down by Galveston for quite a while and saw a TON of snake bitten dogs. According to him, the only two he ever saw die was one that was bit on the tongue and couldn't breath, and another that got struck right on the jugular. He said if the dog is bitten by either a DB, CH, or WM, that I should just bring the dog in relatively soon so that it can be given fluids and given benedryl, but otherwise the dog should recover.

Wow, just to be really sure I'd get a second opinion. I've heard of dogs that died on this board. And I've heard of dogs that were bit by a rattle snake and lived with vets giving the shot as the reason. My vet says don't leave home without it.

rattlesnake causes necroses Benedryl aint gonna fix that

I have had numerous dogs bitten during my life time 64 friggin years. My vet is a rual vet and is known as one of the best in the state. He is also and avid hunter. 5 years ago he told me if you do not use the vaccine on your hunting dogs you are and idiot. I have used it since and have had 5 dogs bitten. I can say for a fact it helps a great deal. The first one was in the kennels where I hunt. I immedately called my vet and he said get him to the vet in snyder. He was bit on the head. The vet in snyder have the dog antihistimines and a shot for infection and ask that I keep him posted on how the dog did and said the dog got a full dose. 3 days latter the dog was hunting.

MY VET SAYS IT'S GOOD TO HAVE THE VACCINE, WHAT IN THE WORLD HARM CAN IT DO? LIKE ALL YOU GUYS I CARE ENOUGH ABOUT MY DOG TO TAKE EVERY PRECAUTION.

GOOD HUNTING!!!

not to start a war but I would get an different vet. If he said the vaccine is not needed then he is confused between two things, his arse and a hole in the ground.

I actually called several vets in my area and they all said they do not offer the vaccine because there isn't any demand for it and because they don't think it's necessary...not sure why I'm hearing the same thing from all of them and something totally different on here...

Probably because the average Dallas vet serves clients with small dogs that hunt tennis balls, not all but most of the clients. Don't know where you live and I could be way off but try some more and they don't need to be ranch country docs, for example call the Aledo Vet Clinic. I find it hard to believe your calling that many vets that would give you that answer. And if they are it's because their clients live in town and have little or no contact with snakes.

I don't mean to be an [censored] (though I have been placed in that catagory before) but if you're going to hunt your dog you need better advice than your getting. The reason they might tell you they don't carry it and no demand is the reason I stated above, the clients have house pets that don't hunt.

I've got to add that I have never seen a rattle snake when I've been hunting, but saw 10 killed in May on the lease I'll be hunting this year. But at $25 a year why not give your dog the best odds he can have.

Check with doctor Grubbs in garland if you are in that area. He should have some "vaccine" and he hunts too.

sorry I missed this. I give them a 25 mg tab then wait an hour and give them another and if that doesn't knock them out I give one more. Then I wait to see what the swelling is doing.

curious, should you use these methods on dogs? dr's say not to do these when humans get bit.

Back in the day my pizz hound got bitten in the creek bed.

Swelling went all the way around the body so mom pulled him out from under the house where he went to die and packed him in kerosene rags and ice. Dog stayed down all day but recovered that evening.

In this day in age.......just get him to the vet.


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