How Can I Tell If My Cat Was Bit By A Snake?

​Unless you are an expert in snakes, and have witnessed the biting, you are best off treating every snake bite as potentially fatal. Most pets should not see a vet, unless you are not sure what kind of snake was responsible for the bite. It is also important to know that venomous snakes can also require veterinary treatment for dogs who are bitten.
The most important thing you can do if your pet is bitten by a venomous snake is get him or her to the vet ASAP. If your dog or cat is bitten by a venomous snake, do not panic, but do go to your local vet as quickly as you can. Knowing what to do when your animal is exposed to a snake -- venomous or not -- can help to ensure their safety and avoid emergency care.
As you can imagine, having a venomous snake bit you or your cat is a traumatic, possibly fatal, experience, which is why being mindful of your surroundings and following the tips in this post are critical in keeping your pet safe. If you are planning on having your dog out on a leash in an area that has venomous snakes, consider signing up for snake-bite prevention training. Contact us right away if you suspect that your dog (or another pet) has been exposed to a venomous snake bite.
It is important to recognize that, as a pet owner, you cannot anticipate the results of a bite, and the only best thing you can do is to get your pet checked out promptly following a known or suspected bite. First things first, call your vet and tell them that you are on the way to their office, even if you are 100% certain the bite is not toxic. Once you get to your vet, the physician will try to determine whether or not the bite was venomous.

After administering the proper antivenom, the vet will continue by checking the interior of the cats body to determine whether or not the bite had a loud impact. For non-venomous stings, the veterinarian will ask that you keep a close eye on the area where you were bitten during a healing period of approximately 3-5 days to ensure that your wound is healing properly and regenerating tissue. If bites are left untreated, over 2 to 3 days, your body functions will break down, and a bite can cause serious damage to organs or death.
In dogs that are bitten by a non-venomous snake, swelling and bruises around the bite are the most common clinical signs. After these signs, the snakes bite site may blacken and die of the venom, causing other severe complications. If your cat has been bitten by a snake, he or she can begin exhibiting some symptoms.
Your cat might attack in pain and require care, particularly if the bite is on the face and is swelling. Even if a venomous bite is confirmed, there is no need to panic right now. There will be considerable pain, but how much venom is released will dictate how severe the bite is.
Fortunately, it is possible for venomous snakes to bite without releasing any venom (dry bites are found in approximately 20%-30% of pit viper bites, and in approximately 50% of all coral snake bites). Of all the snakes encountered in the U.S., approximately 10% are venomous. It is estimated that more than 100,000 venomous snakebite cases happen each year in dogs and cats, with fatality rates of one to as high as 30 percent, depending on the pets size, snake species, and location of bite.
About 300,000 dogs and cats are bitten by venomous snakes in the United States every year, and prevention, protection, and treatment are critical. Most pets recover with timely, proper care, but snake bites can be fatal. Snake bites are fatal, extremely painful, costly to treat, and may result in permanent damage, even when a dog does survive, which is why it is important to be aware of these facts.
Some snake bites are so bad, that even after treatment, the animal does not survive, but given fast, this can be a really great aid to survival. Many pets exposed to the human antivenin will have severe allergic reactions to it, while in contrast, many pets that are bitten by snakes recover completely without treatment. One final comment, There is a rat-snake vaccine now available, but this is no guarantee of safety, and indeed pets that are bitten might still need antivenin treatment.
If you are certain your cat has been bitten by the coral snake, your vet will check for the markings on the fangs to be treated immediately, and so that you can give the antivenom medication. Once you get to the clinic, your pet will be given pain medications, IV fluids, and the area your pet was biting will most likely be shaved. Most pets who are bitten will require admission to a hospital to be treated, and some pets may have extensive areas of dead tissue that will require surgical cleaning for days to weeks.
There are higher mortality rates in dogs who are bit in the tongue or breast, and in pets that have had a longer delay between when they were bitten and when they were treated by their veterinarian. Although extremely toxic, coral snakes cannot release their venom completely with one bite, and full venom infusion requires a process similar to choking, as well as a relatively lengthy bite. Although their venom is the most toxic of all the snakes found in the U.S., these snakes have small fangs and have to chew through a victim in order to inject the venom; according to some experts, only 40% of bites will result in an injection.