# Snake Dogs To Rescue Nigeria Kidnapped Girls



## Lee H Sternberg (Jan 27, 2008)

Terrorists reportedly are held up in a poisonerss snake infested jungle. Dogs would be useful in the hunt for these SOB's but who would send their dogs hunting in a snake infested area.Three girls have already died of snake bites. 

I lived in a snake infested jungles of Costa Rica area with my then, Rottie. I understand the immense dangers of a dog in this environment. I'm not talking about a occasional Rattlesnake. We found fer de lance snakes all the time close by my house. 

I broke my Rottie of snake hunting early with a ecollar. But I sure wouldn't want to turn him loose in a area k like they described in Nigeria. 

Please no politics or this thread gets locked!!!!


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## Bob Scott (Mar 30, 2006)

Proofing dogs off of snakes isn't that hard to do but is it necessary to proof them off ALL species of snakes or just the primary killers in the particular area?

Thanks for the last comment in your post Lee. this could be an interesting thread.


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## Hunter Allred (Jan 28, 2010)

Interesting... We are looking for copperheads & cotton mouths now for someone I train with to use for some trailing dogs snake aversion training


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## Lee H Sternberg (Jan 27, 2008)

Bob Scott said:


> Proofing dogs off of snakes isn't that hard to do but is it necessary to proof them off ALL species of snakes or just the primary killers in the particular area?
> 
> Thanks for the last comment in your post Lee. this could be an interesting thread.


We had a bunch of species in the jungle. The fer de lance was the most feared by everyone. I found a 5 footer 20 feet from my house one time. 

The problem was we were totally isolated from civilization. There was no roads, electricity or medical of any kind. 

The only means of travel was horseback or boat. It took a half day to get to any town.

Locals would get snake or scorpion bites and have to wait until the following morning for a boat ride through the jungle hours to a hospital. 

I loved it there. I could tell stories for hours about living there


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Bob Scott said:


> Proofing dogs off of snakes isn't that hard to do but is it necessary to proof them off ALL species of snakes or just the primary killers in the particular area?
> 
> Thanks for the last comment in your post Lee. this could be an interesting thread.


That comment was _"Please no politics or this thread gets locked!!!!" _and it is very much appreciated. 


Good question: _Proofing dogs off of snakes isn't that hard to do but is it necessary to proof them off ALL species of snakes or just the primary killers in the particular area?
_


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

_I found a 5 footer 20 feet from my house one time. _



What did you do?


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## Lee H Sternberg (Jan 27, 2008)

Connie Sutherland said:


> _I found a 5 footer 20 feet from my house one time. _
> 
> 
> 
> What did you do?


I pulled up my panties and ran like hell.

Truthfully, I ran for a shovel at the house a few feet away and beat it to death. I got to him before he coiled up. 

It was working with a Costa Rica weed eater( machete) when I practically stepped on the MOFO.


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## Connie Sutherland (Mar 27, 2006)

Lee H Sternberg said:


> I pulled up my panties and ran like hell.
> 
> Truthfully, I ran for a shovel at the house a few feet away and beat it to death. I got to him before he coiled up.
> 
> It was working with a Costa Rica weed eater( machete) when I practically stepped on the MOFO.


Yow. I think I'm pretty brave, but I'd be in the pull-up-panties-and-run group.


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## Lee H Sternberg (Jan 27, 2008)

Connie Sutherland said:


> Yow. I think I'm pretty brave, but I'd be in the pull-up-panties-and-run group.


If you are living that remote you better have your shit halfassed together. 

You can goggle Bahia Drake. I lived there when it was just a jungle town with nothing but a chuch , cantina with no ice because no electricity, no phones, no roads, no services of any kind. 

Very cool!

My 2 eldest kids had to ford a river to go to a school under the palm trees right on the Pacific.


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## Lee H Sternberg (Jan 27, 2008)

BTW Sorry for all these typos. I'm still getting used to tablet typing .


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Honestly, my big fear here is Timber Rattlers. We have had enough team dogs get bit by copperheads to know it is not usually deadly but a timber rattler is. I think a cottonmouth is a little worse than a copperhead but a lot less than a timber rattler. I talked my vet out of some injectable benedryl and some dexamethazone for my pack.........sometimes we are too far from a vet if something were to happen.

I think copperhead is a most likely bite because they don't get out of the way as nicely as the others.


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## Bob Scott (Mar 30, 2006)

I've seen a number of small terriers get bit by copperheads. 
One of my hunting partners was a vet and all she ever did when her dogs got bit was give them a shot of antibiotics. 
Their little heads would swell up like a football for a day or so and in a couple of days all was well. 

The Water Moccasin/Cotton mouth is worse for the simple fact it's so aggressive. A Copper head or Rattle snake will usually bite and then go in a defensive posture to see what you do next.
Piss off a Cotton mouth and they want to keep on hitting you.
MOST all water snakes will react the same way, venomous or not.
I had a number of Banded Water snakes when I was collecting herps and they were more apt to get me then anything else. Longer teeth then most snakes also because their natural prey was predominantly fish and frogs. Evolution at it's best!


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

We had to kill a young cottnmouth as it was determined to chase us and we had a search crew coming through.

I have encountered and old one and it was pretty ok. It was coiled and showing it's white mouth but I gave it a wide berth.


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## Sarah Platts (Jan 12, 2010)

The copperheads I've met have been pretty laid back. The dogs just trot over them - sometimes several times - but the water mocs are a whole different kettle of fish. Never much cared for them and I don't like something that chases you as you try to get away. Has anyone ever used injectable Vitamin C as a form of treatment? Bill Tolhurst wrote up a whole chapter about it being used for snake bites in one of his books. Won't pretend to understand how or why it would work but he seemed to give some creditable evidence that it did.


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## Hunter Allred (Jan 28, 2010)

Nancy Jocoy said:


> Honestly, my big fear here is Timber Rattlers. We have had enough team dogs get bit by copperheads to know it is not usually deadly but a timber rattler is. I think a cottonmouth is a little worse than a copperhead but a lot less than a timber rattler. I talked my vet out of some injectable benedryl and some dexamethazone for my pack.........sometimes we are too far from a vet if something were to happen.
> 
> I think copperhead is a most likely bite because they don't get out of the way as nicely as the others.


The southern canebrakes are neurotoxic


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## Nancy Jocoy (Apr 19, 2006)

Hunter Allred said:


> The southern canebrakes are neurotoxic


I believe the canebrakes and timber rattlers are variants of the same species. 

We were on a search in some remote mountains (we had to ride a gator 20 minutes on a rough trail to get TO the search area at a waterfalls site, then walk another 20 minutes to start searching - and the park entrance was 30 minutes from a small hospital) ......... this was out in the boonies to start with. My teammate saw several of them. People were playing in the rocks, kids were running around in flip flops. .....No cell phone signal. People out there think they are in Disneyland and there are no real dangers. I mean use common sense! Keep eyes open and kids on the trails. I was always taught to watch where I put my hand and check if stepping over a log.

This is a first person experience from someone - some pretty graphic images
http://www.herpnation.com/hn-blog/e...-rattlesnake/?simple_nav_category=daniel-duff


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## Sarah Platts (Jan 12, 2010)

Nancy Jocoy said:


> I believe the canebrakes and timber rattlers are variants of the same species.


This is correct. They have done away with the canebrake designation and they are called timber rattlers now. Still don't want to go look for one though.


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