Black snakes will kill copperheads so leave them alone. I have a chicken that will kill and eat the baby copperheads. I saw him running across the yard a few days ago with one in his beak. I followed him and he dropped it, pecked and slung it to death and down the hatch it went. My chicken ain't no chicken!
Our vet has told us to give pain meds and benadryl to our dogs in case they get bit. I would have punched that $1200 a night vet square in the nose!
Thoughts and prayers to you and your dog. We sure get attached to them!
Well, Dixie is doing a bit better, but boy does she look pitiful! Her eye was bleeding this morning, which I think was due to pain, so I had to use a funnel collar thingy, but since it's a soft one she doesn't seem to mind. We finally got the benadryl and pain meds down her, and she actually kept them down.
I wanted to contest the vet bill, but as my sister pointed out, if we had left her there overnight they would have been able to treat her, and since we "refused treatment" it's on our own heads. But I just didn't have that kind of money. Tomorrow we will get her into the vet as soon as possible. I think more than anything she needs fluids, but she only drank once last night. I put some drops on her lips and she licked it, so I did that for awhile, until she went in a corner of her crate and wouldn't look at me!
I'm still ready to clobber that vet due to her indifference and insistance that "beagles are just wimps." I'm also a bit nervous because everyone I know says if you see a copperhead, there is usually at least another one around, if not more. Gaagh.
Thanks for your support! You guys are the best.
My 9-year-old son likes to read this forum. He reads stuff aloud to me when I'm busy working.
Generally, taking a dog to the vet for a snake bite is a waste of money. The vet is clueless and charges you to give you benadryl and common sense advise. Here is Arizona we deal with rattlesnake bite. Our border collie was bit on the side of his head, just like your beagle. Swelled up horribly. He survived, he has a long scar where the skin sloughed off, he was miserable for a few days but he is fine now.
My Original Mountain Cur dog, Axel was bitten as a pup. My sister and I were around when she yelped, stumbled over to us and collapsed unconcious. We determined it was a snake bite, although we did not see the snake at the moment.
Axel as a pup
We called the vet and headed to town. Axel released her bowels, stopped breathing, and was on her deathbed. My sister gave her CPR while I drove. She began to breathe on her own by the end of the 6 mile drive to the vet. Vet xrayed & found trauma to her heart but there was no swelling. She was very groggy but slowly recovered within about 3 days.
We think this is the snake that did it
Axel now has no real disability from the snake bite, but does have a tiny scar on her hind leg and one by her mouth. We figured the bite went into a vein on her face and that is why she immediately collapsed and had no swelling anywhere. She had 1 siezure about 3 weeks after but never had another, that I know of. She is 5 years old now.
Axel now
Guess I need to shotoshop that redeye turned blue!
Your dog should recover quickly & is probably already on the mend!
Benadryl should help but it may make your dog a little drowsy.
Glad to hear the dog is still alive and kicking! It is always hard to lose a part of the family!
What a sweet dog. I learned a lot about snakes that I never knew I would need to know. If I had known, I never would have taken her to the idiot vet. But after the swelling in her eye went down, there was a bit of blood, mostly dark, like it was kind of old. I think she was bit right above the eye.
She has been trying so hard to get down to "her" chickens, but the pain meds and benadryl have made her so groggy. But she finally drank some water this evening, and a bit of chicken and broken up bread. I had some whey left over from making cheese and tried to get her to drink that since it has so many good vitamins, etc., but nope. I'd feel better if she would go pee, though! I'm still waiting for that. But then again, opiods make you not feel like you have to go. Thanks, guys, I appreciate all the advice and support!