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[Don Bowen <don.bowen AT earthlink.net>]

The five stages of bubble-osity
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2006_08/009348.php



Don Bowen              Awl Knotted Up                       KI6DIU
http://www.braingarage.com
My travel journal
http://www.braingarage.com/Dons/Travels/journal/Journal.html

I am omnivagant.  
> From erthnsky AT bellsouth.net  Wed Aug 16 14:06:45 2006
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From: "SISU!" <erthnsky AT bellsouth.net>
Organization: EarthNSky Farm
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Subject: Re: [Homestead] Info on Snakes
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Marie McHarry wrote:

> One of the Anatolian list members posted her Web site just now. She 
> has a story about one of her dogs getting a copperhead bite recently
>  and surmises the snake was looking for water. Scroll down.....
>
> http://kussarkisi.blogspot.com/


Not too bad...

Many of y'all might remember the first piece of property we tried to
buy, Copperhead Creek.  We named it such because during the contract
phase, I was out walking my Norwegian Elkhound on the property when he
was bitten.  I never saw the snake, and in fact, I did not realize
anything was wrong until the ride home.  Hector loved to ride, and would
sit up in the front passenger seat as if he were human. We had only been
at the property maybe 10 minutes, just long enough to drop off some
stuff and walk the dog before the hour long ride home.  We didn't have a
tractor at the time, and the grass was knee high.  I carefully walked
along the 'drive' while Heckie did his business.
On the way home, I noticed that Heckie wanted to lay in the floorboard
and not sit in the seat as usual.  I just thought it was the heat and
the ride and didn't give it a second thought.  We got home, and about 30
minutes later, my friend Sandy came over to visit.  She reached down and
hugged Hector as usual....he was such a huggable love muffin...and when
she stood up, there was blood on her shirt.  We looked to try to figure
out where the blood came from and saw puncture wounds in Heckie's neck.
  Elkhounds have big furry necks, so until that time, we really did not
realize it was swollen, but could tell that the snake was big because
there was almost a 2 inch separation between the fang marks.  I rushed
him to the vet and when they shaved his fur, they discovered yet another
bite as well as an additional single fang mark.  Obviously, he had been
bitten twice, 2.5 times, on the neck.  There were smaller punctures from
the snakes lower jaw, too, so he really got nailed considering all the
fur an Elkhound has. They didn't want to give him antivenom, but did
give him a lot of benadryl and such.  I am convinced it saved his life.
  He spent 4 days in the emergency vets ICU.  However, this was only the
beginning.  For over 8 months, Hector suffered from that bite.  He had
several surgeries to remove necrotic tissue.  It cost me a fortune.
He was such a brave dog.  He never whimpered or whined, not during the
attack, not during the treatment.  I am convinced he saved my life, or
at least my limb and a whole lot of pain, putting himself between me and
the snake.  A good dog will do that.  I had to put Hector down about 2
years ago.  He developed cancer on his neck-the large tumor grew right
next to the place the snake bit him.  I don't know if it was related or
not, but the vet didn't think so.  God, I miss that dog.

Bev
--
erthnsky AT bellsouth.net  BevanRon of EarthNSky Farm      NW Georgia USDA Zone 7
34.498N 85.076W