Sun, Jul 05 2009
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• Two bites reported
since January
By Melissa A. Wabnitz
Transcript Staff Writer
Curiosity may have killed the cat, and it nearly cost a 7-year-old boy his right pinkie finger after he attempted to pick up a pygmy rattler at a relative’s home in east Norman.
Deven Workman said he thought the small snake was dead when he was bitten by it and rushed to Norman Regional Hospital’s emergency room Sunday afternoon. He later was transferred to Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City after his hand became excruciatingly enlarged. All this week, the rambunctious boy has battled swelling and numerous open wounds on his finger after it burst Thursday.
“It’s the craziest thing I’ve ever seen,” said Deven’s mom, Trina. “At one point his arm was swollen to his shoulder and he couldn’t move it, but it’s gotten better… It’s been very painful for him.”
Thursday, in between playing with his cousin, Deven explained that the two anti-venom treatments administered felt “cold to the brain” and that at worst, his pinkie feels “like a snake’s wrapped around it.”
Though only two bites were reported to the Oklahoma Poison Control Center this year, managing director Lee McGoodwin, M.D., said spring and summer are typically “snake bite seasons.” This is also the time of year the pygmies are giving live birth, said Chris Wolfe, collection manager for the Department of Herpetology, Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History.
“(Snakes) are cold-blooded creatures that are most active in the warmer season,” McGoodwin said. “But snakes don’t prey on people, so just taking some safety precautions like wearing the right kind of clothing (boots and long pants) and watching where you put your feet is going to keep you safe.”
Wolfe said it’s no surprise Deven and his relatives didn’t hear a sound prior to his bite. Fifteen more snakes were later found in a shed at the relative’s home off of Highway 9 and 108th Avenue SE, Trina said.
“The pygmy snake is actually the smallest of Oklahoma’s rattlesnakes,” Wolfe said. “It’s often difficult to hear, and the rattle may sound like a buzzing.”
Nonetheless, Deven said he will “maybe not mess with snakes anymore,” welcome news to his mother and two siblings.
“It’s just unreal. I was so scared they were going to have to amputate a finger,” Trina said. “I panicked, of course, and I’m sure that made it worse, but what else would you do?”
Wolfe said the best advice to avoid snakes is simply to “let them be.”
“I think it’s fantastic if people see a snake in their yard and then just observe it from a distance,” she said. “If you just leave them alone, they will ultimately help you by eating the mice and rodents that are around.”
If a person or an animal is bitten by any variety of snake, McGoodwin said individuals should call poison control at 1-800-222-1222 and if any swelling occurs, wash the wound and seek emergency treatment.
Melissa A. Wabnitz
366-3550
mwabnitz@normantranscript.com
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