Question about snakes... Copperheads and safety.

[Mog]

Hi,

Our new pup is coming home in February and I have a concern I haven't been able to find an answer to.

I live in North Carolina and in the past couple of years, I have seen several copperhead snakes in my yard. I found one underneath the garbage can as I was taking it out to the street and I've seen several while doing yard work. (moving shrubs, digging, etc) and I wanted to see if there was anything I could have on hand to treat the pup in the event he was bitten.
My sister lives about an hour away and she had her neighbors watching her two husky's while the family went out of town for a couple of days. One day, the neighbor called and said the dog was barking and trying to get under the shed and when she called the dog to bring it in, she saw a small blood spot on his chest. She cleaned the area, looked and didn't see anything and thought the dog may have just scratched himself on something. Two days later when my sister came home, the spot turned into an actual hole in the dogs chest... She rushed him to the vet and what they think happened was that the dog was bitten by a copperhead and that the skin basically started to disintergrate where he was bitten and the infection spread. It was to the point where they couldn't do anything to save him and it was a heartbreaking experience to say the least.

I don't plan on letting Maximus out without supervision, but even with me being with him, there is a chance he could find one and decide to play with it and get bitten before I could do anything.

I don't have a vet as of yet and I'll be sure to ask him/her when we go for our first visit, but in the mean time, I thought I would ask if anyone here has any knowledge in the area and could give me an idea of what I could do, if something were to happen. The ones I've seen in the yard were small, maybe 18" or so.

I've done some googling and have read that anywhere from 3-15% die of bites, but that more dogs die from allergic reactions to the anti-venum.

So does anyone have any first hand experience and advice on how to handle a bite if it were to happen?

Thanks!

Alex

[blackshep]

I would get a vet and see if they have antivenin available. That' really your only course of treatment if your dog is bitten (I think Copperheads are the least venomous of the venomous snakes in NA though, so depending on the severity fo the bite antivenin may not be required). On PDB a few months ago, someone posted that her female and several puppies were bitten by a Copperhead and she lost several of the puppies, it was heartbreaking.

Also, clean up debris from your yard. Snakes like to hide in wood piles, under garbage lids etc, so the tidier your yard, the fewer places they have to hide.

Learn what the symptoms of a snake bite are in dogs, as the faster it's treated, the better your odds.

Dog Snake Bite Symptoms - VetInfo

Oh, and if you see a venomous snake, go inside and call 911. Lots of people want to kill them, but they are important species in our ecosystem. If given the change, most will just try to get away. Call 911 and they will send someone out to catch it and release it far away from populated areas.

[jocoyn]

Copperhead bites are fairly common. And right on the nose because the dog is playing with it.

Do what you can to remove hiding areas (brush piles, water features etc.) and don't worry too much. Infection is probably the biggest risk with a copperhead but most dogs seem to do ok with rest and benedryl. Never heard of using antivenom on a copperhead bite.

I have personally known 3 dogs who have been bitten by copperheads. 1 was a beagle bit on the nose, 1 was a young GSD bit on the leg, 1 was a senior GSD bit on the nose. All did fine with benedryl (quick, high dose), crate rest and supervision.

Small young copperheads in the spring are THE worst. They dump all their poison in one bite and I think poison is strongest right after hibernation.

[Mog]

Thanks for the replies. This weekend I plan on spending the entire weekend cleaning the yard, clearing any debris, leaves, etc... as long as it doesn't rain... seems like we've had rain or snow every weekend the past couple of months and the yard has been unworkable.

I feel like a new dad all over again And want to make sure I do the best by my pup and I'm prepared as I can be for any emergencies. I'll make sure I have benedryl on hand.

Thanks for the link Blackshep, I'll read and bookmark that next

[jocoyn]

Same site the vet answers about copperhead.

Snakebite in Dogs - VetInfo

For God sakes, if you see a copperhead in NC and call 911, they will laugh their heads off. I have killed copperheads around my yard - with a shovel. They are not anywhere near endangered. Saw more in Charlotte area than near Greenville but I am keeping my eyes out because I think something happened to the huge black snake that used to live here . Black snakes and scarlet king snakes are our friends.

Any snake is attracted to water and the toads and critters it invites, so a garden pond or birdbath is inviting and so are things like birdhouses and feeders.

Obvoiusly, a puppy is more at risk than a healty adult dog.

[Heidigsd]

Could you put up some hardware cloth around your fence so they can't come in? Mat 0.12" Mesh Hardware Cloth | Wayfair

I am doing this with my yard right now since I had two rattle snakes last year


Good luck!

Michaela

[jocoyn]

Can't they climb right over the hardware cloth?

[Heidigsd]

I don't know if they can or not but I am more concerned about them crawling in under the fence.

Quick Facts about Rattlesnakes in California - California Department of Fish and Wildlife

Keeping snakes out of the yard

The best protection against rattlesnakes in the yard is a “rattlesnake proof” fence. It can be expensive and requires maintenance, however. The fence should either be solid or with mesh no larger than one-quarter inch. It should be at least three feet high with the bottom buried a few inches in the ground. Slanting your snake fence outward about a 30-degree angle will help. Vegetation should be kept away from the fence since the snake could crawl to the top of an adjacent tree or shrub. Discourage snakes by removing piles of boards or rocks around the home. Use caution when removing those piles - there may already be a snake there. Encouraging and protecting natural competitors like gopher snakes, kingsnakes and racers will reduce the rattlesnake population in the immediate area. And, kingsnakes actually kill and eat rattlesnakes.

[jocoyn]

Ah, I think it is the slanting outward part that would get them and, of course, burying.

[Scarlettsmom]

I had a copperhead in my yard last June. Scarlett gave that bark that says "MOM there's something in the yard that doesn't belong here!!" I got out there and grabbed her and put her in the house. When I came back with the shovel, the dang thing was gone.

I took down my bird (squirrel feeder)
I removed all the hydrangea plants that completely filled the back of my yard
I am in the process of burning down our wood pile
I will remove the brush pile that was left behind our house from the major yard work last fall
I will be vigiliant when Scarlett is outside this spring and summer

We have several Eastern Garter Snakes and a big, black racer that we regularly see and we want them here. The copperhead does seem to have kept the vole population under control in my yard last summer, but I am overrun with field mice this year. That does seem to indicate that either the copperhead has moved on OR, "he'll be back". :/ Either way, copperheads are a fact of life in SE VA and NC, particularly in suburban/rural areas. They are opportunists and our yards offer great opportunities for them to survive and thrive with less effort.