How the hell do you get bit on the foot and the hand?
One fang went in his hand. I bet only one got him there and the other went in his foot because he was trying to pick it up.
Then, to get bit in the hand again and in the groin by another different hot.
Now it's kill or be killed? That's intelligent. What an idiot.
I bet there is more to this story than what was reported.
How much venom did they pump into this guy? A copperhead? Hell, I got tagged by one when I was taking down a butt ugly retaining wall in my yard . I didn't see the little guy and basically grabbed it with the cinder block I was removing. Ya know what? It was a dry bite. Purely defensive, he didn't even envenomate me even though he got me good with both fangs. Did he have an allergic reaction? The article doesn't say if there was a reaction, it just viliafies these snakes.
So.......he got tagged by a pygmy and copperhead (both IMO would deliver relatively mild bites) but is in critical condition because within minutes he was vomiting and his mouth was swelling, and he could have neurological problems?
Something just doesn't add up if you ask me.
BTW. Here is the entire article.
Snakes nearly kill man
By Ann Weaver
The Oklahoman
TECUMSEH - The wife of a man bitten by two poisonous snakes says he's changed his live-and-let-live attitude toward the reptiles. Poisonous snakes
Forty-six species of snakes are native to Oklahoma, but only seven are poisonous: copperhead, cottonmouth, western diamondback rattlesnake, timber rattlesnake, prairie rattlesake, western massasauga and western pygmy rattlesnake. Poisonous snakes are found throughout the state. Cottonmouths, copperheads, massasaugas and pygmy rattlesnakes usually are found in moist environments.
Features
Poisonous snakes have a depression on the side of the face just below a line between the eyes and nostrils. Also, venomous snakes in North America tend to have diamond or triangular-shaped heads. Harmless snakes have narrow heads, but sometimes flatten their heads when threatened to make themselves look bigger, and can be mistaken for poisonous ones.
Avoidance
. Avoid placing hands or feet blindly. Leather, high-topped boots are sufficient to stop the fangs of most poisonous snakes. Heavy canvas pants and protective leggings can provide added protection. Do not wander outside at night without a light or protective covering for legs and feet.
Source: Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service
Gloria Cave said her husband, James Cave, 47, was bitten four times by two different types of snakes Sunday at their rural home, south of State Highways 9 and 102.
Cave is recovering in the critical care unit at St. Anthony Hospital.
"I can't believe he survived it," Gloria Cave said Thursday. "It's a story we can see some humor in now, but four days ago we thought we could lose him."
Gloria Cave said her husband wasn't well enough until Wednesday to recount the complete story of his encounter with the snakes.
She said he was "puttering around" near a garage about 100 feet from their home when a sharp pain ran through his foot. When he reached down to grab his foot, a pygmy rattlesnake sank one fang into his hand and the other into his foot, Gloria Cave said.
She said her husband stumbled backward and fell over a barrel, landing on a copperhead snake. That snake bit him on the right foot, then in the groin, she said.
She said her husband was wearing sandals and shorts.
James Cave managed to make his way to the house, Gloria Cave said. Within minutes, his mouth had swollen and he was vomiting, she said.
Their 21-year-old son, Andy Cave, and a neighbor loaded him into a car and took him to Shawnee Unity Health Center, about 20 minutes from their home.
He was treated with antivenin and rushed by helicopter to St. Anthony Hospital.
Neil Garrison, naturalist at Martin Park Nature Center in Oklahoma City, said it's unusual for someone to encounter two venomous snakes at one time.
He said the pygmy rattlesnakes, timber rattlers and copperheads exist in patchy parts of central Oklahoma's ecosystem but are not generally a threat to humans.
Garrison said snakes aren't looking for a fight and don't strike unless they're provoked, stepped on or humans simply get too close to them.
The best way to avoid being bitten is to use common sense, he said.
"Don't put your hands and feet where you can't see," Garrison said. "If you venture out in the yard at night, take a flashlight."
Unity Health Center spokewoman Linda Brown said the hospital has seen a rash of snake bites in recent weeks, and they've kept an ample supply of antivenin stocked to meet the demand.
She said if venom enters the bloodstream it can cause neurological problems, so patients with serious bites are sent to larger hospitals in Oklahoma City.
For the past few days, Aaron Cave, 25, has been burning brush and clearing out areas around his parents' home where snakes could be concealed.
A neighbor has been doing the same on his property, Gloria Cave said. She said her husband and the snakes have lived peacefully together on the property for 20 years, and before the snakebites, he had refused to kill snakes around their home.
Now, he feels the situtation has changed to kill-or-be-killed, she said.
Gloria Cave said she returned home Wednesday night for the first time since her husband was bitten.
"Let's just say it felt like a long walk from my van to the front door," Cave said. "We're going to be keeping the porch light on more now."
