Snakebite

[Turpentine21]

Guys I posted the other day about my 53 year old buddy that went to put some corn out and brush out around his bow stand. His wife found him dead on his running 4 wheeler close to the stand. Headed back towards the truck. The initial assumption was heart attack. The autopsy report has not come back yet. His wife sent out an email today to let everyone know that his actual cause of death was a snakebite. I'm not sure how this was missed originally on the body. His wife decided a day or so ago to look at the trail cam video. Which had to be tough. On the video you can clearly see him walk in and a snake strike him on the leg. A call to the pathologist confirmed that he had fang marks on that leg. Type of snake hasn't been determined yet, the video isn't quite that clear, but where he was and the type of terrain he was in it almost had to be a Rattlesnake. Though Cottonmouths and Copperheads are very plentiful here also. Every year folks have pictures of Rattlesnakes they found in or very near to their corn piles. Or pictures of snakes that set the camera off. That makes perfect sense because grey squirrels are one of the Canebrake's favorite foods here. Corn draws squirrels, Squirrels draw snakes.

Regardless of the way he died my heart goes out to his wife and family. She's a tough girl but I know she hurts. I'm sure they all do.

 

[Bob Wright]

Guys I posted the other day about my 53 year old buddy that went to put some corn out and brush out around his bow stand. His wife found him dead on his running 4 wheeler close to the stand. Headed back towards the truck. The initial assumption was heart attack. The autopsy report has not come back yet. His wife sent out an email today to let everyone know that his actual cause of death was a snakebite. I'm not sure how this was missed originally on the body. His wife decided a day or so ago to look at the trail cam video. Which had to be tough. On the video you can clearly see him walk in and a snake strike him on the leg. A call to the pathologist confirmed that he had fang marks on that leg. Type of snake hasn't been determined yet, the video isn't quite that clear, but where he was and the type of terrain he was in it almost had to be a Rattlesnake. Though Cottonmouths and Copperheads are very plentiful here also. Every year folks have pictures of Rattlesnakes they found in or very near to their corn piles. Or pictures of snakes that set the camera off. That makes perfect sense because grey squirrels are one of the Canebrake's favorite foods here. Corn draws squirrels, Squirrels draw snakes.

Regardless of the way he died my heart goes out to his wife and family. She's a tough girl but I know she hurts. I'm sure they all do.

I am sure sorry to hear this of your friend and all families. It's alarming that that bite took so little time to cause such rapid death. It's quite rare but maybe due to an allergic reaction as well?

 

[Greatgrandad]

I am sure sorry to hear this of your friend and all families. It's alarming that that bite took so little time to cause such rapid death. It's quite rare but maybe due to an allergic reaction as well?

Often, snake venom can cause one to go into a coma, and without anyone around to help, the patient lies, or in this case sits, in place until cardiac arrest occurs.

 

[VinceMule]

What a tragedy!

 

[Turpentine21]

I think he may have had some underlying health issues. But you wouldn't know it. He was one tough little man. He was found sitting on the running 4 wheeler, slumped forward over the gas tank and handlebars by his wife. He was already gone when she got there. I'm not sure of the exact time frame but it didn't take long. It must have hit him in a vein.

Our Canebrakes here tend to have a highly potent mix of hemotoxic and neurotoxic venom that can immobilize their prey very quickly. The folks I know at the serpentarium have done some studies on it.

 

[Coyote Shadow Tracker]

Guys I posted the other day about my 53 year old buddy that went to put some corn out and brush out around his bow stand. His wife found him dead on his running 4 wheeler close to the stand. Headed back towards the truck. The initial assumption was heart attack. The autopsy report has not come back yet. His wife sent out an email today to let everyone know that his actual cause of death was a snakebite. I'm not sure how this was missed originally on the body. His wife decided a day or so ago to look at the trail cam video. Which had to be tough. On the video you can clearly see him walk in and a snake strike him on the leg. A call to the pathologist confirmed that he had fang marks on that leg. Type of snake hasn't been determined yet, the video isn't quite that clear, but where he was and the type of terrain he was in it almost had to be a Rattlesnake. Though Cottonmouths and Copperheads are very plentiful here also. Every year folks have pictures of Rattlesnakes they found in or very near to their corn piles. Or pictures of snakes that set the camera off. That makes perfect sense because grey squirrels are one of the Canebrake's favorite foods here. Corn draws squirrels, Squirrels draw snakes.

Regardless of the way he died my heart goes out to his wife and family. She's a tough girl but I know she hurts. I'm sure they all do.

What a sad story. Prayer sent out for his wife.
Jill always worries about me even when I go to the pack property to hunt Yotes. Hogs. deer. We recently had a 2' + copperhead next to our home and I removed Him/Her/they/all the other pronouns.
It is so easy to step over a log, sit on a log, reach down to pick something up and get snake bit. I had a 6'+ Black Racer latch onto my ankle a few years ago when I unknowingly stepped on it.
We have Snake Bite Kits readily available in our Kitchen and in all our shooting packs. The kit may help with a strong Suction device to put on the bite area, but the only way to really help is to stay calm and get to the Hospital ASAP. Knowing what kind of Snake will help with Anti-Venom. Her in the SE we have Rattlers, Copperheads, Cotton Mouths and Coral Snakes.

 

[Turpentine21]

What a sad story. Prayer sent out for his wife.
Jill always worries about me even when I go to the pack property to hunt Yotes. Hogs. deer. We recently had a 2' + copperhead next to our home and I removed Him/Her/they/all the other pronouns.
It is so easy to step over a log, sit on a log, reach down to pick something up and get snake bit. I had a 6'+ Black Racer latch onto my ankle a few years ago when I unknowingly stepped on it.
We have Snake Bite Kits readily available in our Kitchen and in all our shooting packs. The kit may help with a strong Suction device to put on the bite area, but the only way to really help is to stay calm and get to the Hospital ASAP. Knowing what kind of Snake will help with Anti-Venom. Her in the SE we have Rattlers, Copperheads, Cotton Mouths and Coral Snakes.

My wife works in the ER here and they get quite a few snakebites. She sends me pictures regularly and asks, what kind of snake is this. We were trained on snakebites by the company I worked for. But we never carried a snakebite kit. Plus I knew the guys that ran the serpentarium here. I learned a lot from them. I worked in the woods every day for years and saw quite a few snakes. We didn't look for them. We wore snake gaiters in warmer weather and basically plowed through the woods. But we have seen rattlesnakes out in December. If you worried about them you couldn't do your job effectively. But we were always aware. Taking plots we had to slow down and were a bit more vulnerable. Cruising timber and looking up all the time we were definitely vulnerable. I stepped all around a 4.5' Canebrake within 6" while checking a pole for sweep and crook. He was coiled up, never moved, never rattled. When I saw him I was 1.5 feet from him. I had already stepped over him. I killed him with my 4' fiberglass cattle prod I used for a plot stick. The landowner was there. It was on property that was quail hunted 3-4 days a week. He wanted him gone.

It's just tragic that he's gone. We had some good times at the hunting club. You just don't know when you are seeing or talking to someone for the last time.

 

[Coyote Shadow Tracker]

My wife works in the ER here and they get quite a few snakebites. She sends me pictures regularly and asks, what kind of snake is this. We were trained on snakebites by the company I worked for. But we never carried a snakebite kit. Plus I knew the guys that ran the serpentarium here. I learned a lot from them. I worked in the woods every day for years and saw quite a few snakes. We didn't look for them. We wore snake gaiters in warmer weather and basically plowed through the woods. But we have seen rattlesnakes out in December. If you worried about them you couldn't do your job effectively. But we were always aware. Taking plots we had to slow down and were a bit more vulnerable. Cruising timber and looking up all the time we were definitely vulnerable. I stepped all around a 4.5' Canebrake within 6" while checking a pole for sweep and crook. He was coiled up, never moved, never rattled. When I saw him I was 1.5 feet from him. I had already stepped over him. I killed him with my 4' fiberglass cattle prod I used for a plot stick. The landowner was there. It was on property that was quail hunted 3-4 days a week. He wanted him gone.

It's just tragic that he's gone. We had some good times at the hunting club. You just don't know when you are seeing or talking to someone for the last time.

Thats a tragedy.
I have a set of Snake Chaps that I bought 25 years ago and could not wear them due to the heat here in GA. I have seen Copper Heads and Rattlers out in January laying in the middle of the road sunning so they can move. Good leather Boots or Rubber Muck Boots will stop the fangs from getting to your legs.
My scariest was walking next to a wet area/creek and a Cotton Mouth was hanging from a limb at the same height as my head. I turned and looked him eye to eye about a foot away. I put my 17HMR up and shot. The blast blew his head off.

 

[bamban]

Dang, what a tragedy.

The reason I always say, dead snakes are the only good ones.

When I was young we had two family members died from snake bites. Those little green vipers in Asia are killers.

 

[Turpentine21]

Thats a tragedy.
I have a set of Snake Chaps that I bought 25 years ago and could not wear them due to the heat here in GA. I have seen Copper Heads and Rattlers out in January laying in the middle of the road sunning so they can move. Good leather Boots or Rubber Muck Boots will stop the fangs from getting to your legs.
My scariest was walking next to a wet area/creek and a Cotton Mouth was hanging from a limb at the same height as my head. I turned and looked him eye to eye about a foot away. I put my 17HMR up and shot. The blast blew his head off.

Same here with the chaps. Too hot. We aren't far apart geographically. We wore snake gaiters over Green Lacrosse rubber boots mostly.
I wore chainsaw chaps 8 hrs a day 5 days a week for a year after Hurricane Hugo cutting downed trees in front of a Bulldozer clearing roads and fire lines. I got my fill of chaps. They were Kevlar though and not quite as heavy as snake chaps.
I've had a couple of snakes fall in my boat out of trees. None poisonous thank goodness. But it'll still make you hurt yourself. They will climb.
We see alligators out sunning in January if the suns shining and the temp hits 70. They aren't very quick then but they will be out. Snakes will come out then as well. They won't be far from their stump hole or den but they will be out. At home here we see a lot of rattlesnakes moving to higher ground when the river floods. My house is on the river. I can throw a rock in it from our porch. Cottonmouths are always around on tree limbs or docks sunning. We had a copperhead in the yard 2 weeks ago. I nearly stepped on a copperhead under my house a year ago. It definitely makes you think.

 

[wvbearhunter]

As an aside people can have anaphylactic reactions to snake bites separate from the damage the venom does. Its actually more dangerous than the venom

 

[Backwoods towny]

Praying for you and the family

 

[Ol' Red]

Sorry for your loss of a good friend. We have a much shorter snake season here and I am good with that.

 

[Turpentine21]

As an aside people can have anaphylactic reactions to snake bites separate from the damage the venom does. Its actually more dangerous than the venom

Very good to know! I saw a hound get bit by a rattlesnake between the eyes right by the road on a deer drive. We immediately put him in the truck in the AC and tried to keep him calm and comfortable. He went catatonic within 10 minutes and was gone in 20 minutes. With the right bite in the right place it doesn't take long.