NeedMoPower

I came home from work this evening and noticed that my Australian Shepard was bitten in the head by a rattlesnake. Her head is very swollen and she mopes around which is not like her at all. There is no sign of the snake, but the dog put up a heck of a fight because there are pieces of snake skin in her dog dish. Knowing her, she probably ate the snake. Is there anything I should do for her or will she be ok? I'm not too worried about her since she was still chasing cars tonight, but i'd rather be safe than sorry. I'm sure there are other members who have had dogs get snake bit and i was just curious as to how you handled it.

Lary Ellis (Top)

I had a friend who lost both of his great danes to Rattlesnakes about a month apart. I would go to the vet if it were my dog.

Begle1

I know absolutely nothing aboust snake bites, but I'll type a reply because there's nothing else non-productive and time-wasting I could be doing...


I don't think it'll kill her if she's still alive... It's not like venom has an incubation time. Recovery might be a pain though; I think snake bites can lead to open sores and infections...

What makes you think it was a rattler? I would figure that a medium-sized doggie like an Australian Shepherd would be killed if a rattler really bit into him... Rattler's would kill a grown man on most occasions without treatment, correct?

It must have been one of those love bites where little venom is injected...

Redleg

I'd definitely see a vet at least for the blood infection potential.

03 ant a hemi

if it was a rattler then get her to the vet right away and get them to check her out. they might give her some anti venom. some times the affects take awhile to set in depending on the size of animal that she is. I would hate to hear of her get real sick because of it. good luck and keep us informed.

DustyRock

I had a German Shepherd St. Bernard cross. 112 pounds. I lived in an area that had Pacific Rattlers they are almost black. He would kill them by shaking them. I was away one 3 day weekend and the neighbor heard the snake rattling and stepped in with a hoe, well the dog got bit on the face as a result. When I got home two days had passed and I could hardly see his eyes. But he wagged his tail and was glad to see me. I gave him three aspirin (I do not know if that was the right thing to do) but the swelling started to go down and he was Ok. He never had any oozing sores and lived to be quite old. He was a good dog. I always kill rattlers, even if I see one on the road. Hope your pal will be OK. As stated I would definitely take your dog to the vet.

Barry St John

I've had a couple of dogs bitten. The first time we didn't realize what had happened so there was no treatment. The bite area swelled and and he had some oozing but he was ok after a week or so. The second time we took him to the vet where they treated him with a shot and some pills. Same result. I think the treatment was more for secondary infection then the bite. The dog will probably be ok without treatment but at least give the vet a call.

TomW

Loosing dogs to rattlesnakes is common down here. Get it to the vet.

dieselnut55

I would get it to the vet. I think the venin will rot the mussel around the bite. I have had horses get bit around the head, they checking out the snake, they lived through it. I also think the pills will prevent the mussel from rotting away as much as possible. Good luck

NeedMoPower

Thanks for the responses guys. I got up this morning and noticed she ate all of her food so that's a good sign, but one side of her head is very swollen. She was barking and chasing cars before I left for work this morning so I dont guess she is hurt too bad. I'll call the vet as a saftey measure just to see what he has to say. I live in an area that has alot of rattlesnakes and copperheads. I dont mind the rattlesnakes all that much since you can hear them, but it's not any fun stepping on a copperhead. I've done it twice and have been lucky enough to escape without a bite.

spunbearing

A couple of dozen dogs die here per year by rattler bites. If your dog is alive she didn't get a full hit. I certainly wouldn't take a risk next time though. Take her to the vet right away. A good dog can't be replaced. The vet that I have does classes every year. They have a snake handler bring milked rattlers and they put a shock collar on the dog. When the dog goes after the snake they give the dog a jolt. It usually takes 2-3 times before the dog learns to avoid the snake. I don't like shock collars but I dislike snakebites even worse.

caleb c.

We have had a few of our dogs bit by rattlesnakes in the last few years.The trick we use is to shock them around the snake bite,just hook up a wire under the sparkplug of your riding mower or whatever you have and turn it over a few times.It sounds kinda weird but it really works.I have heard it does something to the venom that makes it not eat up the muscle and tissue.We have had all of our dogs fully recover after being shocked.

ramlovingvet

spunbearing

ummmmmmmmmmm

offroadjosh1

whaaaaaa weird sounds pain full