Are blue bellies the only ones that drop their tails? I thought ALL lizards did. I've had a few left in my hand too. I used to catch snakes for a local summer camp's nature center! My best friend and I LOVED snakes! Then over the winter, our teacher (this is when I was in 6th grade) agreed to keep the snakes in our classroom. I didn't catch king snakes, but there were a couple that the camp had, so we got to take care of those too. One of the camp snakes we took care of that winter was a red racer and was mean, but we could get it behind it's mouth and hold it fine--just not often---didn't wanna upset the poor ol' guy too much! Now spiders are different! They're creepy and sneek up on you more. I don't like them!
I would have been the one screaming my head off. I hate snakes. They give me the ebee jebees. LOL I am so glad that it wasn't poisonous.
wow, and yours was not one? see they like to find a nice warm place , the rattlers do I hate spiders too! They make me sick though cause I am allergic so that is part of it hehe.
Seriously, I would not want to own any big ones like King snakes, but little garder snakes would be fun to have for a while... in a teranium!
Here is a bibliography of articles both pro and con the idea of using stun guns for snake bites. This method has not from what I can tell stood up well to experimentation and research. Bibliography (history of this treatment, so it includes a few articles supporting it) Anonymous. 1987. High-voltage shock treatment for snakebite. Postgraduate Medicine 82: 250. Blackman, J.R., and S. Dillon. 1992. Venomous snakebite: past, present, and future treatment options. Journal of the American Board of Family Practice 5(4): 399-405. Dart, R.C., D. Linsey, and A. Schulman. 1988. Snakebites and shocks. Annals of Emergency Medicine 17: 184. Dart, R.C., and R.A. Gustafson. 1991. Failure of electric shock treatment for rattlesnake envenomation. Annals of Emergency Medicine 20: 659-661. Guderian, R.H., C.D. Mackenzie, and J.F. Williams. 1986. High voltage shock treatment for snakebite. Lancet 2:229. Herzberg, R. 1987. Shocks for snakebites. Outdoor Life June: 55-57, 110. Howe, N.R., and J.L. Meisenheimer. 1988. Electric shock does not save snakebitten rats. Annals of Emergency Medicine 17: 254-256. Johnson, E.K., K.V. Kardong, and S.P. Mackessy. 1987. Electric shocks are ineffective in treatment of lethal effects of rattlesnake envenomation in mice. Toxicon 25: 1347-1349. Kroegel, C., and K.H. Meyer zum Buschenfelde. 1986. Biological basis for high-voltage-shock treatment for snakebite [letter]. Lancet 2(8519): 1335. Mueller, L. 1988. A shock cure. Outdoor Life June: 64-65, 110-112. Mueller, L. 1988. A shocking cure for snakebite. Outdoor Life ?: 45-47, 76-78. Russell, F.E. 1987. Another warning about electric shock for snakebite [letter]. Postgraduate Medicine 82(5): 32. Russell, F.E. 1987. A letter on electroshock for snakebite. Vet. Hum. Toxicology 29: 320. Ryan, A.J. 1987. Don't use electric shock for snakebite [letter]. Postgraduate Medicine 82(2): 42. Schmutzhard, E. 1986. Electric shocks for snakebite [letter]. Lancet 2(8506): 578. Stoud, C., H. Amon, T. Wagner, et al. 1989. Effect of electric shock therapy on local tissue reaction to poisonous snake venom injection in rabbits [abstract]. Annals of Emergency Medicine 18: 447.
I would have been looking it up as soon as I knew it wasn't coming after me. With the Lizard we 1. Tried to catch it. 2. Looked it up online 3. Skipped math to do a study on Lizard reproductive systems. 4. Got it out of the house 5. Went to the fair and got a lizard poster. (not all the same day though!) LOL
Prairie Home, that's awesome info! I've never heard of it before. We only just moved to TN 7 years ago from CA, so we had our share of rattlers in the yard. LOL It was mine and my brother's job every weekend to hunt them down and downsize the population. But once I moved out, when I was married and pregnant two King snakes got in the house. There I was, midnight, trotting quickly to the kitchen through a dim house, on my way to get a snack for late night TV watching, when I turned the corner and saw one. No time to stop, for heaven's sake, I'm 150 pounds of pregnant woman! So I increased the speed and sailed over the top of him, right in my cute little nightie. LOL Anyway, found him and weighted a bowl on top til morning. The other one was a different day, and I got him with a paper bag. My kids really enjoyed snakes, though. My son, Brian had a python. I still think that's a bit weird. But Brian was always catching snakes for people when he was a teen. Steve Irwin was a big influence. :
Wow, Valerie! You're more courageous than I! After you'd "hunt them down," tell us how you "downsized the population"--with a shovel? A gun? I just now googled electric shock and snake bite and came up with a choice of 498,000 sites to choose from. Some looked like they would doubt the treatment. The three I clicked on were: "Disease and Treatments," at echotech.org; "A Shock Cure for Snakebite," at keelynet.com/biology/snake; and "Taken from American Surviaval Guide 12/1988," at textfiles.com/survival/snake. "A Shock Cure for Snakebite" explains why experiments & research may not work in labs & why doubt is cast by trying to replicate scenarios, using small animals. All three of these sites were very interesting and mentioned the types of snakes (including rattlers) for which it is effective and two for which it is not. (The latter was news to me.) This treatment is used in many countries for a variety of snake, spider, ant, & other insect bites. I'd like to research some missionary sites, because we heard that a stun gun was required equipment by one well-known group, whenever they travelled through the jungle where a particularly deadly snake existed. This is a fascinating study. Good for chemistry students to study the composition of proteins, etc. And good for practical purposes, like in our area, where the treatment has been used successfully for Brown Recluse spider bites for years. I should add a BTW, to this conversation. My dh & I first heard about this from a young-earth creation scientist who proposed that before the flood, the earth's conditions were such that the ionic charge of the snake's venom (which is a protein) was opposite to what it is today, actually making it beneficial to the recipient! Today, the electric shock also reverses the ionic charge, according to this theory, making it harmless! Now, wouldn't that be something! Just maybe, when we get to heaven and can ask any question we'd like, we'll find out that there really was a good purpose even for those pesky little mosquitoes! Maybe their venom was once good for us, too! I can't wait! Ooh! And that brings up another research project for heaven: How does prayer affect snake bites or any health condition? What does it reverse? How is the Blood of Jesus effective today? So-o much to learn and find out!
We carried rifles and walking sticks with little forks on the ends. When you came across a snake you just trap it's head with the fork. Sometimes we just went with the forks, you didn't see snakes every day, we had to carry them just in case. Then one of us would hold it while the other went back for either a rifle or, yes, sometimes a shovel did the trick. I didn't like killing them, but we were running livestock and walking all over the acreage, and we just couldn't risk the bites. Later on, my dh and I moved to a little piece of acreage in town next to a forested river valley. We let them go there. Although I always wished I'd have tried to cook one, I've heard they are tasty. Well, despite the conflicting info, it sure wouldn't hurt to do it, just in case you were really helping yourself. Generally the bite of, say a western diamond back rattler is not fatal, unless given close to the heart. Or unless you are small, old, or physically weak. Same with black widows. My dad was bitten by one and it never had any effect on him. But he always was a very healthy and strong man. But you hear so much about brown recluses anymore. I wonder if they are hyped up by the media, or what? I don't even know that I've ever seens one, which is, I guess part of the problem they say. That they look very unassuming, average and harmless. Animals and bugs did not bite in the pre-fallen world. All were vegetarian. But yes, just as they have discovered that thorns are actually very tightly rolled leaves that do not develop completely, due to the curse, I would imagine that venom developed for the same reason. It fits in perfectly with biblical truthes.
Vantage, until you posted, I honestly had not heard any negative press about the shock therapy. 'Stayed up 'till 2:00 last night reading & researching & must say I'm still learning. Thanks for your input! I found everything from "The Doctor's World; New Shock Therapy for Snakebites," where some doctors say "it was a first aid measure that worked better than anything else," to others who warn about people with pace-makers and other contra-indications to using it. Apparently it is the JAARS wing of Wycliffe Bible Translators who sell the stun gun. Do I need to say that this is not medical advice? Maybe so: "This is not medical advice." I'm not a doctor, & everyone should do their own research. Valerie, Dr. Stan Abrams, MD spider bite treatment, shows some pictures. You might not want to go there right after a meal... We kill brown recluses like you used to kill rattlesnakes--I mean the number, not the method! The preferred method is using a shoe. They lurk in every closet & attic in the house & even come up the drains. And, of course, they're in all the farm buildings. Not that either is my favorite, but I still prefer snakes LESS than spiders! Did you make your wallking sticks with little forks on the end? Can a person buy them somewhere? I walk through our fields a lot & might feel safer with one, though, OTOH, I'm not sure I could maintain my presence of mind to actually use it. I LOVE learning about things you mentioned--the thorns, for example. How fascinating! Nope--no biting (as in eating) in the Garden, I agree. The person who studied snake bites & whom we heard speak, theorized that all "bites" (the injection types) were actually helpful proteins in that environment.
I see you are in Kansas. You probably have plenty of rattlers around. Mostly you won't see them. They aren't mean and try to get away as much as possible. The trouble happens when they are sleeping soundly and you happen to end up on top of them before they can wake up and get away. They have no choice but to strike at what they fear will hurt them. While you walk just be careful of logs or rocks where they like to rest at. If you end up seeing one, just hold very still and it will likely move off when it sees you mean no harm, as long as you aren't too close. My dad tells stories of being chased as a kid by blue racers. I still don't know if he was pulling my leg or if it was his childhood imagination. He grew up in Missouri. LOL But rattlers definately don't do that. I've never heard of that happening elsewhere. We were always fashioning walking sticks just from tree branches. Pick a nice sturdy one and break it off to fit the bill. A fork at the bottom of about 1 or 2 inches in length, and spread just enough so you can pin the neck down behind the head, but they can't wriggle free. Most vipers have wide jaws, so this isn't a problem. As soon as they are pinned, you can even pick them up behind the head, which is the safest way to carry one if you need to. Otherwise, a quick chop behind the fork does them in. I think I'll look up that site. I'd like to be familiar with them. I just love biblical learning, not just Bible study, but also creation science and eschatology. It is so fascinating how everything fits so perfectly. God is simply glorious!
Let's go on a walk together sometime, Valorie! I'd feel so much safer with you around, & we'd have so MUCH to talk about!
This is an interesting article I thought I would share. It is from Loma Linda University Medical Center. It is from the man who works on Venom ER that is usually recorded at Loma Linda. He writes that electric shock does not work or can make things worse. There is a lot of great information on envenomation. Patty http://www.llu.edu/llumc/emergency/venom-er/strike.html
The poor cat. My Tigger caught a copperhead this summer and decided that he would share his "new friend" with the rest of us. He brought it up to the deck.
