Rattlesnake Aversion Training for Dogs

[stefen]

Its that time of year when the rattlers are leaving their dens and are aggressive when encountered.

In Southern California, as elsewhere, walking or hiking in the rural areas, especially with your dogs can be a problem.

Fortunately, there are boot camps for dogs that includes Rattlesnake Aversion Training.

Since we live in the foothill brush area and hike along the trails, our 2 dogs will be enrolled this year.

The cost ranges from $30 to $60 and takes about 30 to 45 minutes per animal.

 

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[cdsieg]

Thank you for sharing that information. I didn't know they had classes or boot camp for that but it is something I always worry about when I am down south. My dog and I had an encounter three years back and we were on a cliff and walked past it once and saw it when I realized we couldn't go up or down so we had to walk back the way we came. Proof that I love my dog more than life as I put me between the dog and the snake! here is a link to my blog with pictures: Adventures of Shadow The RVing Dog: When do Rattlesnakes come out of hibernation?

 

[idowa]

A friend of mine down in New River, AZ has a greyhound mix that runs free on his 2 acres. Last year, she got bit by a rattler and it cost him $2k in vet bills so he signed her up for the training.

A few months later, I was changing the fuel filter on my Suburban in his driveway when a rattler came up to me and starting rattling about 6' from my head. I scurried out from under the rig and grab my 12ga shotgun and dispatch the snake.

My friend's dog came running out of the house and came right up to the still wriggling snake; showing no fear at all. My friend was not pleased with her behavior...

 

[calisdad]

One of my dogs was bit with no warning and it's a horrific experience. I few bucks spent on aversion training is well spent. Use a reputable trainer and have them show you the effectiveness immediately after the class.

Also there is a vaccine available but very little data on its effectiveness and problems are arrising from its use. Avoidance training IMHO is the way to go.

 

[ret-detector]

I live in FL and have wondered about the snakes and my dogs. Now we are in a subdivision, but I have had the occasion to see two poisonous snakes on my lot in a dozen years...certainly not often, but you only need one encounter to have problems.
Thanks for the post!

 

[lil wayne]

Hound hunters have been using the snake vaccine for a while now and have not heard any complaints from people around here using it. A small cheap shock collar can save your dogs lives repeatedly and some only cost a lil more then the training .

 

[calisdad]

Collars are used in the training. I had collars on my dogs when we encountered a large coiled and erect snake last summer. I was afraid if I used it my dog would jump closer to the snake and trigger it. The dog that had the training backed off much sooner than the other one did.

Regarding vaccine, my vet told me dogs are coming up with auto immune issues after recieving the vaccine. I did hours of research trying to find info on the vaccine. Red Rock, the company that makes it just doesn't provide any clinical study results. If you find differently please post it.

regards- C-dad

 

[Produce Guy]

When my chocolate lab was about a year old my vet suggested I get him rattlesnake proofed ,for around $75 they stuck a shock coller around his neck,had a real rattlesnake(defanged)in a field of tall grass,had him go by the snake,the snake starts to rattle and then the turn the switch on.My dog jumped about 2 feet off the ground and let out a loud bark and ran right over to me.Was it worth it?,yes last October(2012),we were walking at one of our favorite parks ,when all of a sudden,my dog jumps to the other side of the trail,I look down to see about a 4 foot Rattle snake coiled up and starting to rattle .

 

[Produce Guy]

P.S. your vet should also have an anti-venom shot they can give your dog.

 

[kuger]

Hound hunters have been using the snake vaccine for a while now and have not heard any complaints from people around here using it. A small cheap shock collar can save your dogs lives repeatedly and some only cost a lil more then the training .

I used to carry it,and now cant get it.I have lost two hounds since,and had a pup bit three years ago here in the yard that cost me $1400.One of the hounds I lost was one of the best dogs I ever owned,snake got him at 3 in the morn somewhere between the tree,and the truck...got him in the throat.Antivenom likely wouldnt have done any good

 

[BosnMate]

One of the ranch dogs on the place I was working in Nevada got bit just on top of it's nose. One of the old buckaroos said not to worry, she won't die. He acted like he knew what he was talking about, and the closest vet was 50 miles, so the dog ended up on it's own. Her face swole up to the point her eyes were closed. She was pretty sick critter, but as I recollect the next day she was getting better, and I don't remember it taking her very long to fully recover. Another time one of the other employees and I were heading out on the desert, doctoring cows or what ever, I don't remember now, he was riding a colt, I was on a gentle horse, and we had 5 or 6 dogs with us. The dogs were walking single file down the dirt track on one side of the road. I spotted the snake just about the time the first dog walked across it. The snake was laid out straight, about 3 feet long. All the dogs walked over the darn thing, and it never coiled or rattled until the first rock hit it. My horse would have walked over it also, none of the animals had any idea that the snake was there. I bet if you get Kuger and me started on snake stories we could go on for a long time. I hate 'em, and I've killed almost everyone I've encountered.

 

[kuger]

My earliest memory of a child was my grandad bein bit by a Timber rattler in the mountains 20 miles back in,it was the fourth time he had been bit,and good thing they said if he had not built up kind of a immunity,it likely would have killed him.
Thats a great point Bosn,I have seen many a dog recover fully,just leave em alone or immediatly give em Benadryl...boy your right,you and I could go,on and on.......dang things are the DEVIL!

 

[calisdad]

I carry Benadryl in a pocket of my hunting vest. When my black & white was bit we dosed him with Benadryl immediately and had him to an emergency vet within an hour. Still avery ugly incident. He was bit on the face and his chest swelled up like there was a football under his skin. I hate them now. I didn't used to but I sure do now.

Not all vets carry the anti venin. It apparently has a shelf life. My understanding is you have about four hours for it to do any good. It's inneffective against a Mojave green rattlesnake bite. Different kind of venom.

 

[BosnMate]

Worked for a short time for an outfit on the Eel River in northern California. That was in the days of small rectangle bales. When picking up hay, every bale had to be rolled to make sure there wasn't a snake under it. They kept anti-venom in the refrigerator. That was one of the shorter jobs I've had. Needed work, but not that bad. If the snakes live in the black basalt in Nevada, they are the same color as the rock, if out on the tan colored ground, they are tan, in Oregon the darn things are a dark green, and in that field they were the same color as the hay. Just thinking about them bothers me. This is the first I've heard of Benadryl for snakebite. How much do you give the dog and how do you do it. Also, people will tell you there aren't any rattlers in the high country. I know of one killed coiled up at the base of the 7000 foot sign on Sonora Pass.

 

[calisdad]

BosnMate, Benedryl comes in 25mg tablets (mostly). Use 1 mg per pound of of the dogs weight. It's not a cure-all, it just helps. There aren't too many options when you're miles from nowhere.

 

[kuger]

Bosn.....great info from Calisdad

That last snake that bit Gdad,was at Iceberg,north Of Dardanelle,7000+ elev.....also Dad killed a sidewinder outside of Bridgeport........35 years,never seen one and have never since.He always felt bad for killing it,but at the time,I was young and he didnt want me getting bit by it

 

[calisdad]

That was an expensive education.

I actually used the Benedryl in my vest a month ago. Last week of quail season and I sent Trap (my black & white) in some cover for quail and he came backing out like he was snakebit, again. He had yellow liquid all over his face and his eye was already swelling shut. It didn't smell like a skunk right away and I never did see what it was (weasel?) but it sure ruined our day.

 

[kuger]

Hmmmmm,I cant think of any animal besides a skunk that discharges a fluid in defense here.Mink/weasles and such have a VERY distinct musky smell.Was there any type of smell?

 

[calisdad]

It seemed to get worse but didn't smell bad right away. Wasn't musky so must have been a skunk. By the time I got home 1/2 hour later my wife smelled us coming up the driveway.

 

[BosnMate]

Bosn.....great info from Calisdad

That last snake that bit Gdad,was at Iceberg,north Of Dardanelle,7000+ elev.....also Dad killed a sidewinder outside of Bridgeport........35 years,never seen one and have never since.He always felt bad for killing it,but at the time,I was young and he didnt want me getting bit by it

I've never seen a sidewinder or even a track. Ran over a big rattler on the Raymond Road. I was driving a 37 chevy pickup with really bad brakes, and I had the peddle to the metal so to speak, just a dumb kid driving too fast. In those days there was no traffic on the Raymond Road. The local constable drove a model A, and he put the clutch in and coasted down hill. I came teaaring around a corner and the snakes head was off the pavement and in the grass on the right hand side, and its tail was off the pavement and in the grass on drivers side, and I couldn't stop. Looking back that snake was all wadded up in the rear view mirror, but by the time I got stopped and backed up, it was off in the grass, and I didn't have guts enough to follow it.