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Rattlesnake
Vaccine - Information
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After reading this
page, you can visit our other 'prevention' pages, by using
the links below |
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Rattlesnake venom is a
complex mixture of toxins that spreads
through a dog's body following the bite. According
to Red
Rock Biologics, the vaccination is
much safer than antivenom treatment.
Protective antibodies made by your dog in
response to the vaccine start neutralizing
venom immediately. On average, antibody
levels in recently vaccinated dogs are
comparable to treatment with three vials
of antivenom. |
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Two
doses of the vaccine are needed, spaced a
month apart for dogs under 100 lbs. Dogs
that weigh more than one hundred pounds
need a third vaccine one month after the
second vaccine in the initial series.
Protection begins one month after
the last booster.
Shots are recommended annually in the
Spring or a month prior to “snake
season”.
At my vet they were $15.00 each, compare
the cost to the snakebite
treatment estimate below. |
| The
vaccine is labeled against the
venom of the Western
Diamondback Rattlesnake. |
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Copperheads
are bad in our area, according to
my vet two dogs that had been
vaccinated were bitten by this
snake and said to have had a large
decline in swelling and a faster
recovery time. |
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| If
your dog has been previously bitten and
had an allergic reaction, be sure to
mention this to your vet as is not
recommended that the dog be vaccinated. |
The
vaccine does not eliminate the need for
veterinarian care, and an animal who has
been bitten should still be evaluated.
The purpose of the vaccine is to prevent
the allergic reaction to the venom of the
rattlesnake. It will not prevent an
infection, local tissue reaction, or
systemic infection. |
According
to the Red
Rock Biologics’ product
information sheets, “The severity of a
rattlesnake envenomation (venom-injecting
bite) is related to the species of
rattlesnake involved, the amount of venom
injected, the rate at which the venom
reaches systemic circulation, and the size
of the dog.
In unvaccinated dogs, approximately 20 to
25 percent of venomous snakebites are
“dry” bites – no venom is injected.
An additional 30 to 40 percent of bites
are classified as “mild,” reflecting
minimal envenomation: pain and swelling
are present, but there is little or no
systemic (whole body) involvement.
Another 30 to 40 percent of bites are
“moderate” to “severe,” reflecting
increasing degrees of systemic
involvement.
Roughly 5 percent of envenomations are
fatal,” usually due to allergic reaction
to the venom.
Vaccinated dogs have fewer and less severe
symptoms than similar unvaccinated dogs.
Moderate to sever bites present as
mild, with nonprogressive swelling, as the
vaccine-elicited antibody combines with
the injected venom to slow down systemic
absorption, and neutralize toxin activity
resulting in less tissue injury or pain.. |
We've
done our own version of "snake-proofing"
the dogs and
today we took "Hat" and
"Speedo" for their first snake
vaccination.
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Hat relaxes in the waiting room.
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They both weighed in a
36 pounds
(Photo of Speedo) |
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| Hat doesn't
look like he is having a good time |
Speedo
doesn't know what's coming |
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A
dog bitten by a snake - See an estimate
of cost below |
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Photo
taken by Lisa Lee, provided by Sue
Cranston. |
| 7/23/05 |
Veterinary
Hospital
Estimate |
Page 1 / 1 |
Anti-venom
is very expensive and also may not be
readily available as it only has an 18
month shelf life.
| Date |
Description
|
Low
Qty. |
Low
Amount |
High
Qty. |
High
Amount |
| 7/23/2005 |
Examination Small
Animal |
1.00 |
$30.00 |
1.00 |
$30.00 |
| 7/23/2005 |
Fluids Initial Setup
IV |
1.00 |
$47.24 |
1.00 |
$47.24 |
| 7/23/2005 |
Lactated Ringers
Liter |
1.00 |
$10.00 |
1.00 |
$10.00 |
| 7/23/2005 |
Soludelta
Cortef-100mg/10ML-CC |
10.00 |
$26.00 |
10.00 |
$26.00 |
| 7/23/2005 |
Antivenom per vile |
1.00 |
$448.000 |
3.00 |
$1,344.00 |
| 7/23/2005 |
Hospitalization
21-50 LBS |
1.00 |
$17.65 |
1.00 |
$17.65 |
| 7/23/2005 |
+
Antibiotics Depending On Size
Animal |
1.00 |
$0.00 |
1.00 |
$0.00 |
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Low
Subtotal: |
$578.89 |
High
Subtotal: |
$1,474.89 |
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Tax: |
$2.15 |
Tax: |
$2.15 |
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Low
Total: |
$566.80 |
High
Total: |
$1,462.80 |
If
your dog is bitten, snake I.D.
is very important because the vet needs to
know what kind of anti venom to use.
Kathleen
& her dog Barney, who I met at a
Search & Rescue seminar, had an
unfortunate run-in with a rattlesnake, she
relayed the following..
If your animal is unvaccinated, and
"you choose not to have the vet
administer the antivenin, be sure to ask
them the consequences of that decision.
Per the ER vet, loss of limb (if a limb
bite), system shutdown (the venom affects
the whole body), necrosis of tissue and
possible surgery later to close the wound
(which can include skin grafts), even
cardiac arrest can result. Snake bites are
serious."
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