Rattlesnake bites Lander man on lip, tongue

A pet rattlesnake bit its extremely drunk owner once on the finger while the man was playfully flicking its head, then bit him again on the lip and tongue after he attempted to kiss it, reports the Lander Journal.

According to Sgt. Gene Galitz's popular column "CopsCorner," the Lander man, identified as Rattlesnake Bob, was driven to the emergency room at the Lander Valley Medical Center on March 23 by his girlfriend. When he saw a patrol car at the hospital, he refused to get out, saying he hadn't had much luck with cops.

Galitz tried to persuade the man to seek medical attention, but the man refused. Luckily, the snake's bites did not inject venom.

"I'd bet the next morning the snake woke up with a hangover and Rattlesnake Bob woke up wondering who pierced his tongue and forgot to put in the decoration," Galitz wrote.

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Man, hard to comment on that one. Complete stupidity.
I know alcohol is a major factor is people bitten by venomous snakes.
Clay do you, or anyone, know about the percentage of venomous snakebites that are alcohol related?
Thanks,
Uncloudy

I once read that it was over 90% (and that it wasn't the snake that had been drinking in ANY of the cases)

Unreal.
Thank you Terese, that's a staggering statistic. The general public should be made aware of that statistic. Perhaps it would lessen their fear of snakes, since about 90% of venomous snake bites involves druken fools who have completely lost their inhibitions.
Happy Herping,
Uncloudy

Actually, here is some information:

From http://www.alligatorfarm.com/faq/reptiles.html

The danger of encountering a reptile is largely overrated. In the United States, deer and bees cause more fatalities each year than any other animal. Dogs bite over 3 million people and kill an average of 14 per year. Venomous snakes bite several thousand people each year, an average of 14 are fatal. The average person bitten is not a small child playing in the yard (only 19% are under 16), or a woodsperson. Over 80% are trying to kill or are intentionally handling the animal. Additionally, and curiously, 9 out of 10 victims are male, and 28% are intoxicated.

From http://www.wemjournal.org/wmsonline...&issn=1080-6032&volume=008&issue=03&page=0152

The objective was to study the intent of exposure to snakes and other factors contributing to snakebite injuries in order to develop prevention strategies. We used a retrospective chart review and a follow-up telephone interview of snakebite victims who were admitted to a tertiary care center between 1985 and 1994. The data collected included demographics, intent of exposure and host and environmental factors. I performed descriptive analysis. Twenty-four males and six females ranging in,age from 2 to 93 years sustained bites from a variety of snakes including rattlesnakes, copperheads, and Egyptian cobra, and others. Sixty-seven percent (20/30) of all bites resulted from intentional exposures to snakes: professional snake handlers (7), snake hunts (8), and playing with (aggravating) snakes in the wild (5). Sixty-five percent (13/20) of intentional exposures involved novices in a recreational/home setting, and 35% (7/20) occurred in an occupational setting. Unintentional exposures occurred while victims were walking in wooded areas, fishing by streams, gardening, and washing dishes indoors. Forty percent (12/30) of all victims had consumed alcohol before the snakebite, 92% (11/12) of whom were nonprofessionals with intentional exposures. Only eight victims (seven of whom were professional handlers) were using protective equipment. I concluded that the majority of snakebite injuries resulted from intentional exposures to snakes in which a variety of factors such as the use of alcohol and lack of protective equipment likely played a role.

From http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cach...nakebite.html+venomous+bite+intoxicated&hl=en

The majority of rattlesnake bites occur when people (usually intoxicated young men in their 20s) tease or play with their "pet" rattlesnake.

Man, you drunk 20-something guys are getting the brunt of some bad PR!! LOL

Wouldnt common sense tell you not to play with the venemous snake after 5 beers? Got bit once, then tried to kiss it???

What my whole beef about this is "playfully flicking it's head". Well if he was flicking the rattle snake in its head, the moron deserves to be bit.....