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Tiger Snakes


Ptolomy
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Has anybody had or know of a dog who has been bitten by a tiger snake and survived?

Just need to know if the dog was ventilated, if the vet did anything other than conventional treatment, and how long before the dog regained consciousness after being bitten. ;)

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Cant exactly help much but my dog was bitten by either a tiger or brown. Vets were unsure which. It looked like a Tiger to me but????

I had her to the vets really fast. It only took one lot of antivanine and she was home the next day. She wasnt unconscious at any point so may not be relevent to you.

The vet said the key is getting the antivanine in really fast.

Good luck and hope everything is all right.

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A friend's dog was bitten by a tiger snake about 3 weeks ago and she has survived but she is like an old dog still by comparison to the 9 month old pup she actually is. Her dog was rushed to the vet from the moment of the bite and received treatment within 30 minutes maximum of being bitten.

Time will tell if she is going to make a full recovery. I can ask all the details if you'd like but probably not tonight.

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If it was one of mine & a tiger snake it would be PTS asap.

Out of interest for my friend who has just treated her dog why is that? Do you have experience of it? I saw my friend this afternoon when we were picking up Grover and she was commenting that her dog is just not the same since the bite - is this likely to be a lifelong change?

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If it was one of mine & a tiger snake it would be PTS asap.

Out of interest for my friend who has just treated her dog why is that? Do you have experience of it? I saw my friend this afternoon when we were picking up Grover and she was commenting that her dog is just not the same since the bite - is this likely to be a lifelong change?

Were antibiotics adminstered after the snake bite?

My boy was treated locally & not by my regular vet a year last October for what was suspected to be a brown snake bite. The dog was at the vets twenty minutes after being envenomated, had treatment & was hospitalised overnight. However, we were not given any antibiotics when we bought him home, just told to rest him, monitor the colour of his urine, no walks & no bones. In the days following the snakebite the dog became very lame. I mentioned this to my regular vet who was surprised he was not put on a course of antibiotics - this vet does this as a matter of course with all snake & lizard bites regardless of envenomation but due to the risk of infection.

The dog was back to normal within days of being put on the ABs, & although I have been told by acquaintances & well meaning people that dogs do not fully recover after snakebite, this was certainly not my experience & was discounted by both vets so long as treatment is sought quickly before the kidneys are affected. We managed to keep the dog calm following the bite, he was a good patient & also has body weight in his favour being Shep x Kelpie & a good 40 kilos!

Good luck to your friend & I hope her dog fully recovers.

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Snake bite has two effects:

* the venom's immediate effects (neutralised with anti-venom)

* the severe toxic assault on a dog's immune system. A lot of folk recommend very high doses of Vitamin C to help the dog overcome that. Injectable Vitamin C seems to assist the dog to deal with the toxins.

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My cat was bitten by either a tiger snake or a brown snake years ago, he was already in a bad way when we found him but managed to survive thanks to my awesome vet. He took him home with him and his wife got up every hour to turn him over as he was paralyzed for a while. Dunno if that helps at all....

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If it was one of mine & a tiger snake it would be PTS asap.

why :eek:

I used to live in a shocking Tiger snake area before, and lost dogs to them as well as saved some (both antivenine & VitC treatments). I am currently looking at my 15yo Collie (16 in April) who was bitten by a Tiger many years ago, she whelped a litter after that and never ever did I consider PTS when she was bitten. The only ones I lost were those that I found too late due to not being home at the time of the bite.

Ptolomy, from my own experience .. having the dog on a drip, antivenine and VitC all work wonders. The timing of being able to administer these treatments is imperative. Once the heart is affected by the venom then you have a huge battle which will most likely not be won. Thats the only time I have PTS a snake envenomated dog :cheers:

Recouperation will not be fast. Keeping the dog quiet for weeks/months after the bite is important. Kidney function most likely will be affected, as was the case with my old girl. She has had intermittent kidney issues since the bite, but nothing life threatening. The kidneys take a real beating from having to fight the venom effects.

Hope your friends dog is okay :cheer:

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Havn't had a dog bitten but this year is a really BAD year for snakes. We've just had our second tigersnake inside our back yard :cheer: . One of our JRT's killed it pretty quick. Those little dogs are afraid of NOTHING, which can be a bad thing. She was lucky she didn't get bitten.

I've kept the lawn short, cleaned up around the place and they still show up...

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Thanks for the info everybody.

I am not prepared to discuss the fors or againsts of treatment or PTS. I just wanted to hear of any first hand experience, the treatment given, and if possible success stories.

Yes she is on large doses of Vit C and antibiotics and given the choice - its much better to be bitten by a duigite than a tiger snake as the outcome seems much better and cheaper!

Full credit to the Vet Practice who has allowed somebody to be with the dog 24/7.

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I have had first hand experience with a tiger snake bite and treatment was successful. I had a lovely young doberman girl that was bitten on her flews (chops). Within minutes she was coughing up foam and her pupils dilated. Fortunately I was there to notice the symptoms and took her straight to the vet. She was unconscious when I got there and basically lost all bowel and bladder control. I really thought I wouldn't be bringing her home.

She was at the vet for two nights and was on a drip as well as having had two lots of antevenine. She came home very weak and her pupils remained dilated for a few weeks so I had to keep her inside. Full recovery took a few months! However, this old girl lived to be 16 so even though it had a huge short term impact, there were obviously no long term affects.

I hope your friend's dog recovers well!

Cairo1

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Just had a text message from Ptolomy - not good news I am afraid - poor dog had organ failure and has been pts :cheer: . She was only such a young dog as well - life is way to short and just plain cruel sometimes. My thoughts are with them all at this moment. Bit lost for words.

Makes you appreciate every single day our guys walk on the planet. Off to go and give my two an extra cuddle.

RIP little one :eek: .

Edited by ness
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