Lost a good dog today from snakebite.

RabbitRodeo · Post by **RabbitRodeo** » Tue May 15, 2007 11:27 am

My female Callie, purchased from Lynn Perkins passed away last night. Terrible way to go. She was bit on the neck by a snake. Her head swelled up like a basketball. Vet gave me medicine, she seemed to be getting better, then took a turn for the worse. Right up to the end, she was wagging her tail as I rubbed her head. Terrible way to go. With most dogs I have we are business partners, I feed em and run em and they earn their keep. But this was a special dog, we had a real connection, like we could read each other. I was running her everyday up to her getting bit. She was becoming an awesome dog. Makes me wanna give up runnin beagles.

Lynn Perkins · Post by **Lynn Perkins** » Tue May 15, 2007 11:58 am

Sorry to hear about callie,she was a very nice young hound,always hunted so hard for the jump.

danny vansickle · Post by **danny vansickle** » Tue May 15, 2007 1:07 pm

do you know what kind of snake it was?i heared rattle snakes where bad down your way.we have copperheads up here,they are bad enough.

sorry for your loss.

Bartels · Post by **Bartels** » Tue May 15, 2007 1:25 pm

sorry for your loss

Rneil · Post by **Rneil** » Tue May 15, 2007 1:27 pm

Sorry for your loss. I know first hand what its like to lose that special dog.

brawlin beagle · Post by **brawlin beagle** » Tue May 15, 2007 4:47 pm

sorry for your loss , glad we don't have snakes like that up here in mi. .

RabbitRodeo · Post by **RabbitRodeo** » Tue May 15, 2007 5:51 pm

I suspect it was a copperhead. Although there are rattlers, copperheads are much more common. She had been running along a creek bank in some thick cover. Thats the way it goes sometimes. Lynn, that callie dog was a real jump dog. She had really come along, and I had been hoping to start her in some little pack trials. Oh, well. I guess I will be looking for another pup.

coolbrze · Post by **coolbrze** » Tue May 15, 2007 9:26 pm

Sorry to hear that. You mentioned she was running a creek bank - any chance it was a cottonmouth/water moccasin? Of course a bite to the neck could carry the venom straight to the heart and have more damage. Again, sorry for your loss, why is it always the good ones?

Lynn Perkins · Post by **Lynn Perkins** » Wed May 16, 2007 4:15 am

RabbitRodeo wrote:I suspect it was a copperhead. Although there are rattlers, copperheads are much more common. She had been running along a creek bank in some thick cover. Thats the way it goes sometimes. Lynn, that callie dog was a real jump dog. She had really come along, and I had been hoping to start her in some little pack trials. Oh, well. I guess I will be looking for another pup.

I'm not saying they want but i have yet to see a bite from a copperhead kill one,but anything is possible.I would suspect a Rattler,a bite to the head or neck area and their body temp. hot from running will take one down fast.Give me a yell,got several crosses you can choose from,can't replace Callie but a new pup might fill in the cracks some what.

RabbitRodeo · Post by **RabbitRodeo** » Wed May 16, 2007 7:01 am

The vet also told me that he had never seen a copperhead kill a dog. I usually walk pretty close to the dogs, I reckon I might be a gettin me some snake proof boots. Lynn, I will holler at you to see about a pup. Thanks

Randy Phipps · Post by **Randy Phipps** » Wed May 16, 2007 12:10 pm

Sorry for your loss. Its hard to replace the good ones. I went through the same thing a couple of weeks ago with my Dot female. She had been running with the pack for about 4 hours and when I went to putting dogs up I noticed she wasn't with them. I spotted her 10 minutes later laying out in the field with her head and neck all swollen up. She acted like she didn't have the strength to get up so I carried her to the house but she didn't make it very long. My vet said it sounded like a rattlesnake bite and that there wasn't much could be done for one that was bitten in the neck area. She had just weaned off a litter of pups about 2 weeks before this.

SilverZuk · Post by **SilverZuk** » Wed May 16, 2007 1:44 pm

Why is it always the favorite ones that seem to be taken away early?

I have buried my 2 favorite hounds (both around 2 years old) and still have an old rabbit dog that is good but I am just not emotionally attached to like the others had to bury.

main event`s beagles · Wed May 16, 2007 7:35 pm

you know the good die young. y we never know.i feel your pain and hope you get another. the main event

Done Gone Beagles · Post by **Done Gone Beagles** » Thu May 17, 2007 4:28 pm

sorry about your dog, done killed three this month,copperheads,one was 2&half ft.&the other ones babys. I have eight beagle& I worry about that myself but what do you do run them sorry

RabbitRodeo · Post by **RabbitRodeo** » Thu May 17, 2007 8:00 pm

I am sure you guys all have similar stories, such is life. It really stunk because my 6 year old son was wanting us to start running her in little pack. We were really excited about her, the daily running was really paying off. I am thinking about getting my son and I another pup real soon. We have two other male dogs, they are nothing special though.