My dog has been snake bitten

[Megan le Fey]

I also posted this on Pets.

Wednesday morning Connie(big girl - Great Dane) came in carrying one hind leg and howling in pain. I got her to the vet, hoping for a dislocation and fearing a ruptured cruciate ligament. The vet thought that the cruciate was most likely and sent me away with anti-inflamm. meds. He said that it was too swollen and too painful to be able to manipulate etc. to properly diagnose and to return Friday pm.

Instead of subsiding, the swelling got far worse and, from her behaviour, the pain also. She wouldn't eat or drink anything and I was syringing water into her but she is still a little dehydrated. When we got back to the vet today he was concerned for infection and for a possible broken leg or whatever so he did X-rays and everything came out normal. Anyway, to get to the point, he decided that she has been snake-bitten. When I expressed my relief that it wasn't anything very bad (not to mention expensive) he suggested that it could actually be very bad and that it is not a foregone conclusion that she will recover OK. After half a lifetime in Africa, anything less than a mamba, a puff adder or a gaboon viper has always seemed to be small potatoes. Are there seriously poisonous snakes here? Connie weighs 60kg so should be able to cope with a mildly poisonous bite, however, her leg is very, very swollen and still very painful and she hasn't eaten since Wednesday although she did take a drink by herself a few minutes ago.

[Dog]

The snakes are out and about -  the Belgian Shepherd that lives with me has found a few this week and they have been very aggressive. Luckily they were Whip Snakes and Grass Snakes, although there are Vipers about.

I am sure your canine will be OK.

[steve]

Yes, vipers can kill a Dane - My Parents had a GSD who was tagged by a viper /Adder in UK - he got to th evet in time, but a Dane who was bitten afew times did not even make it off the moor. Be careful with your dogs, watch them all the time for different behavoir, could be ticks, snakes etc

Steve

[Christine Animal]

Very sorry to hear this Anne.  How is Connie?

 

[Megan le Fey]

[quote user="Christine Animal"]

Very sorry to hear this Anne.  How is Connie?

 

[/quote]

I just got back from the vet an hour ago and he gave me more antibiotics and told me to stop the anti-inflammatories. I have another RDV for Tuesday.

Her leg is still hugely swollen but whilst still tender, seems not to be as painful as yesterday.

I am most worried about her not eating. She still hasn't eaten anything (except half a packet of mousse de canard) since Wednesday morning although she is now drinking by herself. I bought her a can of that liquid food from the pharmacy - more than ten euros a can and by her weight she should have about six to nine cans a day. She seems to like it but I still have to give it by syringe but I hope it will stimulate her appetite.

The vet is still determinately not optimistic and says that it will be a long time before she is recovered. I am determined that she will.

[Frenchie]

Sorry to read about this. Fingers crossed.

[chris pp]

I would assume that your dog is recovering now, is that the case? Also, has your vet actually shaved the area where the "bite" is? This should be clearly visible, and what treatment has the dog been given other than anti inflammatory and antibiotics?

Chris

[Megan le Fey]

Chris, early this morning I sort of force-fed her some roast chicken mixed to a paste with the pan juices and a little cream. She went out to "spend a penny" and got back on her sofa herself - until now I have had to lift her on. Just now she ate slices of raw chicken breast by herself so, fingers crossed, she is on the mend. During the night she was red hot, eyes glazed and breathing so fast that I thought she was going to fit. I covered her body and the leg with towels soaked in iced water and kept changing them for about an hour after which she settled down to a natural sleep and was cool-ish again. I am hoping that the worst is over but the leg is still worse than useless, just hanging with the toes turned backwards and still massively swollen.

When I first took her to the vet we thought the problem was an injury and it was only a couple of days later, after the X-rays showed nothing physically wrong that he said that it was snake-bite. I asked him why we could see no punctures and he told me that sometimes you cannot see it. She hasn't been given any treatment other than the anti inflammatory and antibiotics.

I hope the vet hasn't got it wrong and it is something like a ruptured cruciate ligament. He X-rayed it twice - surely he couldn't get something like that wrong?

[mint]

Poor dog!  If you really have doubts about the diagnosis, can't you get a second opinion?

Though, fingers crossed, she does sound like she is getting better.

[Megan le Fey]

She is much less depressed than she was and drinking huge amounts of water. Unfortunately, she is insisting that, as food goes, cubes are out and raw chicken breast is in. Since yesterday, she is just starting her second packet of 6. We have an RDV with the vet tomorrow evening so perhaps he will come up with something new. I had thought of a 2nd opinion when he said "snake-bite" but thought that he probably gets quite a few and would know one when he saw it. Unless I can feel that it is not to her detriment to go with the treatment she is on, I guess I will look at a second opinion. I just hate the implication that I don't trust this vet.

http://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h15/miggimeggi/Great%20Danes%20at%20St%20Aout/Connie/IMGP0091.jpg

[Russethouse]

Poor Connie - that looks really horrid...

[WJT]

That is horrible! For you and Connie.[:(]

There is a vet that posts on Total France, perhaps it is a good idea to ask there as well. I will post a link and hopefully she will see it.

[WJT]

Anne, the below was posted by Nettie after asking the question on your behalf on the other forum. Perhaps it would be a good idea to ask the vet about it.

 

"Don't they have an anti-venom serum they could give her? Certainly that's what the vets would do in the UK although they don't stock it. A friend of mine's working cocker was bitten by an adder last year and she immediately kept her still and got her to the vet. She then had to drive to the nearest hospital to pick up the anti-venom serum and then back to the vets with it. It was touch and go for a couple of days but fortunately the dog recovered."

[Megan le Fey]

Yes, I went and had a look at the Total France forum and saw this post. The thing is, I am not sure but believe that anti-venom is species specific and I didn't see the snake, although I believe that there are only two probabilities. It was also a couple of days before the vet began to look for an alternative to either a dislocation or a ruptured cruciate. I had wondered about anti-venom when he told me it was snake-bite (he was very positive about it) but I am afraid that I felt that if it was either necess. or likely to be effective he would have said so.

She does seem to be on the mend. She still will not put the foot down but the swelling whilst still bad, does seem to be subsiding. I was mistaken when I said that he had taken her off the anti-inflammatory, actually he had changed it for a different one. The best news is that she has started to eat again. If the police saw her now, they would arrest me for cruelty. She is all bones after almost a week without food but now she wants to make up for it all in one go and I am having to ration her and am giving her 4 small meals a day in order not to overload her.

I see that a mod on Total France deleted the link. Bit petty don't you think or am I being over-critical?

[Christine Animal]

So glad to hear Connie's on the mend Anne.  What a traumatic experience.

I had a look about it and came upon a chasseurs forum where one said his Setter was bitten and his lips were all swollen, then the chest and then one of his front legs!

 

[Catalpa]

[quote user="Megan le Fey"]Bit petty don't you think or am I being over-critical?[/quote]

No, you're not.

Glad your girl is on the mend. [:)]

[Gardian]

This business got me a bit nervous about the strimming I was doing today, so I wore the wellies. I felt that OH was being callous and somewhat flippant in suggesting that any snake biting me and getting any of my blood, would be getting the worst of the deal.

Anyway, a biggish green lizard took flight and made me jump out of my skin. What with him and the bees, I'm just about wildlifed out today.

Glad that 'Big C' is on the mend.  

[Megan le Fey]

Apologies to all the snakes in France, and to Gardian for making her nervous in her garden. Yesterday, after close to two weeks, my vet decided that Connie was not snake-bitten but that she has, after all, ruptured a cruciate ligament. The next move it seems is a specialist surgeon in Limoges but that's not for the Wildlife Forum. I'd put a smilie here somewhere but Google Chrome won't let me have any.

[Grumpy]

I've only just picked up on this thread so apologies for the late comments.  Really pleased that Connie has finally had a good diagnosis and hope she mends quickly and well.

I worked for the Forestry Commission for 30 years.  During that time I came across several cases of dogs being bitten by Adders and as far as I remember none died.  I did however have a friend who narrowly excaped death after an adder bite.  His wife was told the anti-venom is only of use if administered very soon after the bite so remember that it is not a cure-all!

Grumpy