blueridge
Well-known member
My girl got bit by a copperhead today. I was in the garage getting ready to push the boat out when I hear her yelp, see her jump back, then watch her high tail it out of sight. I thought it may have been yellow-jackets, until I walk closer and see a good sized one coiled up. I grab a shovel from the corner and by the time I come back it has crawled in a hole that goes back under the slab. I need vengeance, but I know that snake/rat hole probably bifurcates into a maze and there’s no way to dig it out. I pour some gas down it, let it sit a minute then light it. Poof! It blows dirt and a toad out, but no snake.
I go check on the dog. She is hiding under my truck, wide eyed and shook. I look her over good and can’t find any blood or bite holes. She would be licking where she got struck, and she’s not, just standing there dazed, so I think it may just have struck at her and scared her. I go back to hooking up the boat. I pull it around the driveway and see her on the porch, and it is instantly apparent where she got bit. The right side of her muzzle is swollen and she has a 6” strand of drool coming down. She is starting to pant so we take her to the emergency vet in case her airway gets constricted.
On the drive she is starting to really swell up, spreading down into her neck, so I put the hazards on and floor it. With the combination of hazards and flashing my lights everyone in the fast lane gets the idea and moves over for me … except this one a$$hole who wouldn’t get over no matter what I did. Right lane is full, just him in front of me going the same speed as the other, me honking my horn and flashing my lights and he just ignores me for the next 2 miles until the exit.
I am pissed, and when I get over and come up beside him I express my displeasure and he flicks me off. I don’t know what else I could do to let him know this was an emergency.
Anyway, get to the vet and they get the swelling under control, bloodwork to test clotting and coagulation time, pain meds, prescription for antibiotics, and not too much $$ later we’re headed home.
She’s drugged up, oozing rust colored blood, and still pretty swollen, but she should be okay.
F-ing copperheads.
I go check on the dog. She is hiding under my truck, wide eyed and shook. I look her over good and can’t find any blood or bite holes. She would be licking where she got struck, and she’s not, just standing there dazed, so I think it may just have struck at her and scared her. I go back to hooking up the boat. I pull it around the driveway and see her on the porch, and it is instantly apparent where she got bit. The right side of her muzzle is swollen and she has a 6” strand of drool coming down. She is starting to pant so we take her to the emergency vet in case her airway gets constricted.
On the drive she is starting to really swell up, spreading down into her neck, so I put the hazards on and floor it. With the combination of hazards and flashing my lights everyone in the fast lane gets the idea and moves over for me … except this one a$$hole who wouldn’t get over no matter what I did. Right lane is full, just him in front of me going the same speed as the other, me honking my horn and flashing my lights and he just ignores me for the next 2 miles until the exit.
I am pissed, and when I get over and come up beside him I express my displeasure and he flicks me off. I don’t know what else I could do to let him know this was an emergency.Anyway, get to the vet and they get the swelling under control, bloodwork to test clotting and coagulation time, pain meds, prescription for antibiotics, and not too much $$ later we’re headed home.
She’s drugged up, oozing rust colored blood, and still pretty swollen, but she should be okay.
F-ing copperheads.
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