tagprod said:
I know about rattlesnakes because they are indeginous to where I grew up and I ran across them on occassion. Now snakes around Houston, I'm not too knowledgeable about. I thought it was a copperhead but I was wrong. Too bad for the snake I didn't find this out until after I cut his head off with a shovel. RIP snake.
Tagprod, I see you live in Tomball and I'll tell you this, if you haven't dealt with a copperhead yet, you will. I used to work in the ER of a hospital around there and in the late spring to early summer, would would see a copperhead bite in the ER almost nightly. Here are some of the commonalities in the victims:
1. bitten usually between 8:30 p.m. and 11:00 p.m.
2. rarely saw the snake
3. usually barefoot
4. bitten while walking through the grass along the side of the house or flowerbed
5. usually while turning off or moving the sprinkler
Of all the venomous snakes in Texas, copperheads are among the most benign. Most adult patients will spend a few hours in the ER getting IV pain medicine and nausea medicine. Rarely, they will be admitted. I never once had to give antivenin to an adult for a copperhead bite. Usually end up going home with prescriptions for nausea and pain meds, an antibiotic, and a freshly updated tetanus vaccination status. Kids however, are a different case and usually end up getting admitted. They get sicker quicker.
My advice for you down there in Tomball is to clean out those skimmers in the daytime when you can see and don't ever stick your hand anywhere that you can't fully visualize. And wear shoes. Lots of times, if the patient had simply been wearing shoes, things would have turned out differently
