If you are hunting in rattle snake country get your dog vaccinated against snake bites. I forgot to give my old pal his shot. And yes he was bit by a sidewinder in western Arizona. This is not antivenom this is a shot that may save your dog. These shots run about $50.00 here in the west. Series of antivenom can run as much as $7,000.00 man or beast. My dog did not die. The problem is he now has a level 4 heart murmur. DK
By the way I gave the sidewinder a shot also. Note his guts hanging out. That was a 9MM HP shot. I wanted to save the head and tail. He is very dead. DK
You can take all the precausions you want, but there are hidden killers. My American Water Spaniel did from Limphoma at 5. Great hunter and a big boy. I still keep my new hunter up to speed on shots. It is cheap compared to what they give back. Sophie.. Man, I do miss Sampson...
My dogs kill gardner snakes all the time.....I'm not taking them anywhere near out west. Have they come up with an effective anti-porcupine injection yet?
Always a good reminder to make sure we are taking care of those who take care of us. Sorry to hear about your loved one, Durango.
Thanks guys. I can't tell you how much I liked your post. Paterson, sorry for your loss. My dog Macbeth was a wonderful Gordon Gun Dog. Mac and I were checking springler heads. He was nailed by a Badger. While being treated the Vet discovered he had stomach cancer. My son was home on leave from the U.S. Border Patrol. He had to take him out to be put down. Big old tough me, man I just couldn't do it. Its damn hard to part with your best friends. Only other dog men can relate to these stories. So far as taken care of those damn "Porky Pines" its my old S&W 29 .44 one shot seems to take care of them. Thx Guys. DK
Never knew there was such a vaccine, definatly gonna be getting my mountian cur(Huck) one of these. I worry to death down here in Florida when I turn him loose out in the woods, we got more posinous snakes down here than I like to think about. He's not got tagged yet but I only take him out when the weather pretty cold, now if only they would make a vaccine for alligator bites I would have nothing to worry about.
Back when I was a boy my grandpa use to take his hunting dogs to the vet the 1st time they got bit, After that he said the dog could survive a rattle snake bite as there body developed a slight immunity to the venom, And it seemed to be a fact as I witnessed it in person, Wasn't pretty their head would swell up like a bowling ball and all kinds of gew would drool out of there mouth since most of the time they were bit on the nose, After a couple times of riding out the bite the dogs would learn to stay away from the snakes, We lived out in the desert out side of Las Vegas NV, Back then they didn't have such a thing as the vaccinations you are referring to, Bob
