Austin's southeastern neighborhood shaken by a snake infestation

AUSTIN, Texas – The people of southeast Austin are a little shaken by a snake infestation.

"Lately, it was rattlesnake after rattlesnake after rattlesnake," said Claire O. Neal, who lives at Beacon Knob Drive.

Snakes are visitors that O & # 39; Neal and his neighbors did not expect.

"The people in their yard are on needles and needles," she said. "Me especially because I have a nine-month-old son and a 30-pound dog."

There are four types of poisonous snakes in central Texas: the coral snake, the Copperhead, cotton handkerchiefs (water moccasins) and rattlesnakes.

If you walk around this neighborhood near McKinney Falls, you may see one on the road.

"Every day, someone says to me," I saw a snake, "she said.

The neighbors group even has a Google map, identifying the snakes observed in the area.

"It's the time of year when they move," said Brian Kelly, who works for ABC Home & Commercial Services in Austin.

"There is a good chance you will meet one there," he said, especially with the development disrupting their land.

ABC Home & Commercial Services receives at least a dozen snake observation calls a day.

"Close all the holes and look around, and close all the openings you have," Kelly said.

Shawn Valance is very conscious of taking precautionary measures.

"I'm trying to take precautions for my house," Valance said. "I close the holes and remove the clutter to make sure they're not hibernating."

Kelly said that snakes liked to sneak into the yard and that cleaning these objects could help a lot.

This is a difficult situation that this district hopes not to worsen.

"We are mutually back because it's like an invasion of snakes," O. Neal said. "And it's scary."

According to Texas Parks and Wildlife website, here's what they recommend you do if you're bitten by a snake:

• Suppose there has been envenomation, especially if the initial symptoms are present. Initial symptoms of viper bites include puncture marks of the fangs; in addition, they almost always include immediate burning pain at the bite site, immediate and generally progressive local swelling in less than five minutes, as well as local discoloration of the skin. The first symptoms of coral snake bites are: tremors, speech disorders, blurred or double vision, drowsiness or euphoria, and marked increase in salivation in four hours; however, the deadly effects of envenomation of coral snakes may not be evident until 24 hours or more.
• Identify the species of venomous snakes that inflicted the bite, taking care, as far as possible, to prevent another person from being bitten. The identification is not necessary, but can be useful.
• Keep the victim as calm as possible. This helps to reduce the spread of venom and the onset of shock.
• Keep yourself and all other calm group members. This will help reassure the victim and ensure that the proper first aid measures are followed, while preventing anyone from getting hurt.
• Know and pay attention to shock symptoms, and institute the appropriate treatment, if any. Respiratory difficulties and / or renal failure are common symptoms of envenomation.
• Wash the area of ​​the bite with a disinfectant if available.
• Remove jewelry such as rings and watches, as well as fitted clothing, before swelling.
• Reduce or prevent the movement of a bitten extremity, using a splint if possible; this helps to reduce the spread of venom. For the same reason, place the end below the heart level.
• Bring the victim to a medical facility as soon as possible and begin treatment with intravenous antivenom, crystalloid solutions and antibiotics. The antivenom treatment is usually more effective in the first four hours of envenomation and ineffective after 8 to 10 hours.

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That's what Texas Parks and Wildlife recommends DO NOT do if you're stung by a snake:

• Do not make incisions on bite marks. This can cause significant damage to already traumatized tissues, as well as intact structures such as nerves and blood vessels, increase bleeding caused by venom anticoagulant components, and increase the rapid spread of venom throughout the body if the circulatory system is compromised. A suction device, such as Sawyer ExtractorTM, can be used without incision. This device can remove large amounts of venom, although its effectiveness has not yet been conclusively determined.
• Do not use tourniquet or any other restrictive prohibition except in extreme cases of envenomation, and only if you are properly trained in the technique. Such devices have no value if they are applied more than thirty minutes after the bite and if they are used improperly, they may limit the vital blood flow to the traumatized tissue and possibly result in the amputation of a limb. Unsupportable pain may also result, and improper laxity of such devices may allow sudden systemic absorption of the venom.
• Do not use cryotherapy (cold compresses, ice, dry ice, chemical ice packs, aerosol refrigerants and gel) for the same reasons that tourniquets should be avoided and also, as this can increase the area necrosis .
• Do not use electroshock, a method popularized as a result of the publication of a letter from a missionary in South America, which reports its effectiveness in treating induced bites. by snakes with uncertain identity. Several controlled and at least one human clinical trials have shown no positive results. moreover, the potential negative consequences of the uncontrolled use of an electrical charge are obvious.
• Do not drink alcohol because it dilates the blood vessels and increases the absorption by the circulatory system, which promotes the spread of venom more quickly.
• Do not use aspirin or similar medications to relieve pain because they increase bleeding. An analgesic that does not contain aspirin can however be used.
• Do not use the pressure / immobilization technique, which involves firmly wrapping the entire limb with an elastic bandage, then splinting, especially for viper stings. The theory behind this treatment is to confine the venom to the area of ​​the bite until it reaches a medical center, but studies have shown that the technique was ineffective or worse with venoms that produce swelling and tissue damage. .
• Do not administer antivenom in the field unless you have adequate training in the procedure, unless evacuation to a medical facility takes several hours, days, or if envenomation has occurred. been extreme. The intramuscular or subcutaneous application of antivenom has been shown to be much less effective and, in some cases, ineffective, than intravenous administration. Acute allergic reactions to the antivenom may occur and the field-directed administration of this serum should include a sufficient supply of epinephrine (adrenaline) to counteract these potential effects.

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