Cheri McDonald Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Our old Buddy was bitten by a copperhead snake last night. :eek: He is doing well this morning and is resting and being monitored at our vet office. I went to take the black and white brigade out for one last potty run before bed. When I caught up with the dogs at the garage dog door to the outside there was a dog jam in the door. Figuring that Buddy, as usual, could not see in the dark, I flipped on the light in the yard and there was the snake on the walk. Rob was circling it and Briar was huddled in the corner. As soon as Bud spotted it he went for it. It struck him on the right side of his muzzle. After screaming LEAVE IT as loud as I could, I got them all back in the house. We grabbed keys threw them all in the van and headed for the ER vet. Buddy was the only one that was bitten. Our vet says she is mostly concerned about his pain, being bitten on the muzzle makes their mouth hurt pretty badly she said and they do not want to eat or drink. So until he willing does that, he must stay on IV fluids. Swelling was not too bad because we rushed right in and didn't wait, she said that was a good sign and he might be home this evening or tomorrow evening. Thanks for keeping him in your thoughts gang! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carson Crazies Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Oh no, poor Buddy! I'll be praying for him. How very scary! Hope you can get some rest too! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaggieDog Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Good thoughts heading your way...poisonous snakes scare the crap out of me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whinny Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Ick, at least you got him in right away! Will be keeping buddy as well as your family in my thoughts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bc friend Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Good thoughts and prayers headed your way. Please keep us posted on Buddy's progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lance Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Buddy will be in my thoughts and prayers. Wishing him a speedy recovery. What about the snake? Hope he is long gone and doesn't cause any more problems. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urge to herd Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Sending lots of prayers and thoughts for Buddy and all of you as he recovers. Hope he's back home quickly with no ill effects. Well, maybe a healthy respect for snakes . . . Ruth n the BC3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dixie_Girl Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Prayers going out for poor Buddy. That has to be a scary situation. Seeing the snake and all the dogs around. Another reason to have obedient dogs! Good job getting them to vet right away. Glad it only got one. Guess it could have been worse. Hope all goes well. Please keep us informed on him! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iLLt3cK Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 I'm sure Buddy will be just fine. I had a similar experience with one of my past dogs as we lived right in front of a creek bed that was known to have a water mocassins hanging around. Well one day I recalled my dog from the back of my fence and it looked like he had two oil spots right above his eye. Turns out he was bitten by a rather large water mocassin because I went to wipe the "oil" off his head and could then see that it was blood. We rushed him to the vet and he was ok luckily - his neck ended up swelling up quite large as a result however. I guess Buddy had scared off all of the grizzly bears and decided to protect you from the copperhead! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IronHorse Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Hope Buddy recovers soon. What happened to the copperhead? Ya know their skin make very attractive collars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueborders Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Healing thoughts headed your way! I know too well how scary the whole snake bite situation is. My Cardigan Corgi was bitten twice by a rattlesnake on Aug 3 of this year. Once on the top of the head and once in the eye. Unfortunately he had a severe reaction (and received a lot of venom from the mean snake) and swelled humongously. He got great vet care started w/in 30 minutes of the bites and after 4 days at the vets on IVs and other drugs, he has healed amazingly well and doesn't even have a scar! He's already back to herding and agility classes. Katrena Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoku's mum Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Good vibes and lots of love to Buddy for a speedy recovery. We have lots of Rattlesnakes here, and they do scare the poo out me. Katrena - they have a rattlesnake vaccine that supposedly will lessen the impact of the venom, still an emergency vet visit, but the swelling is supposed to be much reduced. We went for it, no snake encounters (yet) thank goodness. Glad your pup was OK after his snake bites. Kristin, Hoku and Gussy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 I hope poor Buddy makes a speedy recovery! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheri McDonald Posted October 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Just talked with the vet and Budderman is drinking water and ate a small amount of wet food. Looks like he will get to come home this evening as long as he keeps making improvements through the day. Thanks all for you heart felt wishes. Reading all you posts has really calmed me down, and Buddy is feeling it too!! THANKS!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nancy Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Prayers are going out to all the gods and goddesses we know of. Any new info? Man, am I glad that Fergie's interest in lizzards, turtles, frogs, and toads does not extend to snakes. Those she'll sort of point out to me. But from a good distance. Even little worm snakes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueborders Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 So as not to detract from Buddy's healing thoughts...I'm going to post about the rattlesnake vaccine in the health section in reply to Kristin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sue R Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Best wishes and prayers for Buddy's continued recovery! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyrasmom Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 So glad to hear tha all is going well with Buddy's recovery and that he's coming home soon. Snake bites are very frightening to say the least! We just went through a rather nasty rattlesnake experience so I can totally relate! Maria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcnewe2 Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Yeah for Buddy feeling better!! I keep benadryl on hand for just that kind of emergency. I have a friend with 5 rather wild ACD's and they have all been bitten by copperheads. They all survived and she even quit taking them to the vets. Guess it depends on the dog. Ask your vet about benadryl for early treatmeant if it should ever happen again. I've killed more than I'd like to see here in AR. Good luck and keep us posted. Kristen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheri McDonald Posted October 3, 2006 Author Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Hey Kristen, Yep vet said next time pop a benadryl in him and ice pack the bite area. My worry is his age at 13 I was so afraid it would put him down. Vet did a once over on Briar and Rob and didn't find anything but he gave them both benadryl just in case. I am a hive suffer so we keep it stocked in our house. He said that of all the venomous snakes here in Arkansas that if you are going to get bit by one that one is the less of the evils. Did you get all your stock moved down there safely? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoloRiver Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Will be sending good thoughts to Buddy. Poor guy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcnewe2 Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Yep I got the sheep down here. Been fencing ever since. How are you adjusting to AR? It's been a hard move for me but I'm starting to adjust. The weather is killing me tho. So glad it broke. Any time you want to make a trip down here to see us we'd be glad to have you. I'll wrestle the snakes back in the pond or woods before you get here I have one friend who won't come down till winter as she's afraid of bugs and snakes. So glad Buddy is doing better. The last copper head I killed was right on my front porch. My son is an all animal lover and was pretty upset with me for killing it but better safe than sorry. Hope all stays well with Bud and the rest. Kristen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bcnewe2 Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Maria, Yikes...Rattlesnakes would really freak me out. Guess AR is OK, unless I've just not run into any rattlesnakes yet. I don't know why, we've got everything else. I keep waiting for an alligator to climb out of my pond They tell me bear is common here too. Geesh...this true country life can be a bit scarry! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fooshuman Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Oh poor Buddy! I will keep him in my prayers. Give the ol' guard dog a pat from Foo's crew! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WyoBC Posted October 3, 2006 Report Share Posted October 3, 2006 Poor Buddy! My prayers are with him. I hope he gets to come home soon. Tell him to stay away from those snakes. Nothing good comes from them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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