Help with Tod!!! Snake bite

[jacqui]

poor Tod and you ! he looks happy to be back home and with his family.hope hes feeling better soon.

[Dogdad]

Wow, I just found the post, I am so glad you took him to the vet, you never know. I hope tod is feeling better and not getting to spoiled

David

[fillyok]

Tod seems to be doing much better. I just wish I knew when/how the swelling will go away. He's been a trooper about taking his meds (with hotdog bits) and the others are benefiting from his ordeal.

[Lisa_D]

Oh, the poor baby! I am glad he is doing okay and has a good momma to take care of him! That is so scary!

[GmeMstr]

{{{{Tod}}}}!!

Just saw this and I hope he is at least resting comfortably. I would have never expected a snake bite either! Best wishes for a speedy recovery!

[vicster605]

Poor Baby and Poor You....I'm so glad he is back home and will make a full recovery. Glad only 1 fang got him Geez... Nasty lookin' wound.
Reminds me of the day I walked out my side door to put something in the freezer outside and the Chow Girls followed me.....then started barking before I got back.....a freakin' water mocasine sp was coiled up in front of the door I just came out of I looked like a banchee out there screamin' at the Chows to LEAVE IT and screamin' at the snake who was trying to bite them and learchin' at them........then it dawned on me I couldn't get back in the house.....freakin' snake in front of the door I had forgotten my house phone on a table on the side porch and called my dh to come and HELP ME!!! He works 5 mins away......
Where did the snake go??? I wouldn't worry about that.....they move VERY FAST and is probably far far away.......they usually Move on when something comes after them

[Laura]

Oh Vicki you made me laugh! I remember that happening and my reaction would have been exactly like yours! Too funny!
I hope Mr. Tod is feeling better today! Poor baby was trying to protect his family and got a nasty boo boo for his efforts! So glad it wasn't worse. A snake killed one of my aunts dogs (a Scottie) years ago.

[chowfrnd88]

OMG FIllyok!!! that is so scray. I'm so glad that he's okay. Poor little guy, he looks like he's got a golf ball in a cheek pouch! I hope teh swelling goes down soon. Is he eating a bit more today? Give him lots of hugs and kisses from us! I think he may need another frosty paw!

[fillyok]

The swelling is starting to go away, but poor Tod still doesn't seem like himself. I'm sure the meds have something to do with that. I thought he would be pawing more at the bite on his face, but he pays more attention to the leg where they shaved him for the IV. I think they shaved so close that he has razor burn. I tried cool compresses yesterday, but I couldn't tell if it was better or not. He definately has the Chow attitude when it comes to pain. They say snake bites are extremely painful, but Tod barely flinched when the doc looked him over and I know I touched his muzzle all over before I took him to the vet.

I was talking with some friends this morning and one guy (another Okie) tells me about a Chow he grew up with that was bit about 6 times and died. That must've been one heck of a fight. At least Tod was smart enough to know he was out-gunned...too bad he wasn't just a tad bit faster.

Vicster, I'm with you...I think I would've given the snake a heart attack if I'd seen it happening.

[vicster605]

Theres something about shaving their paws that drives them crazy.....Kearra chewed at her IV site so bad, I wrapped it in that gauze wrap that clings to itself for a few days....she kinda left it alone after that. They sell the good kind at the feed store
I would say its all those steroids making him act a bit funny, and probably some pain to go with it....he'll feel better in a couple of days, I hope....just have to be thankful that snake didn't get BOTH fangs in his muzzle, poor guy

[wallacethegreat]

Phyllis...Here in new Mexico, a lot like where you are in Texas, our vets have a snakebite vaccine. The dogs get two shots...both costing a total of $36 here in my neighborhood. the second shot is a booster. I actually did a news story on this last summer to let people know that there's a vaccine for snake bites for CANINES only. No such thing for humans.
My older Golden Retriever likes to go after bad stuff, snakes and all, so I got her the vaccine last year and am about to do it again now.
The vet told me that larger dogs, like Tod, have a better chance of survival if bitten without the vaccine. Small dogs usually die, or it takes several vials of anti-venom at the cost of $750 per vial.
So, for all of you who live in poisonous snake areas, check with your vet to have your dog(s) vaccinated. If your vet doesn't have it, ask that they get it for you. It's cheap and can save your dogs life.

[fillyok]

Yup, Tod's vet mentioned the vaccine and I figured once I can make sure Tod's past the really bad stuff I'll take him in for the vaccine (even though I think he's learned his lesson). I'll probably get the rest of the pack vaccinated too.

BTW, Tod's swelling has gone down considerably and he's getting a little more skip in his step. His razor burn seems to bother him the most. I tried a wet towel with some Peace and Kindness (Layla posted about this stuff before) sprayed on it to see if that would help soothe it. I tried it on a burn on my arm first so I would know if it would irritate it more...get that...human testing so it can be used on animals!!

[Layla]

I tried it on a burn on my arm first so I would know if it would irritate it more...get that...human testing so it can be used on animals!!

LOL, I've taking to 'borrowing' their peace & Kindness spray for my cuts & burns

[TJordan]

I'm am happy to hear that Tod is starting to feel better. THe poor guy, I couldn't believe the size of the swelling.

[fillyok]

Tod's back to his old self. The swelling is gone. That nasty bite still looks pretty bad, but it's healing. He has about a week left on the meds with the steroid only 1X a day now and soon it'll be every other day.

It rained pretty good yesterday and it was just raining a little while ago, so hopefully the snakes will go back to where ever they belong and leave my yard alone. I can't handle another scare like this...I'll be getting out the Miss Clairol to hide the grey soon.

[PurpleKisses]

Poor guy. We had a beagle/basset mix named Pepsi when I was a kid and she got bit all the time by rattlers, it freaked us out every time but it seemed like after the first one it just made her want to kill them more. She would always swell up and then be fine after a day or two. So just be careful that he doesn't decide that he wants to get them more.

[chow fancier]

He looks so much better! I am so glad to see and hear that he is healing. My thoughts and prayers are with you both.

By the way, he is an adorable looking boy! Love the tufts of hair by his ears. Do you know what his mix is?

[fillyok]

I think he's red Golden Retriever mixed with Chow. His tail curls like a Chow and he's got spots on his tongue, but his personality is much different than the rest of the pack. He listens more and likes to snuggle all the time. Sometimes I think the others only keep me around for the Frosty Paws.
I'm hoping he learned his lesson and will leave the slithery things alone from now on. I'm sure that same snake won't come back after the scare it probably got from 4 barking, snarling dogs trying to show it the way out of the yard.