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Warning: Wildflower Picture Season is Also Snake Season

Pit vipers, like the rattlesnake, kill an average of one to two Texans every year. While not every snake is poisonous, doctors say that bite victims should always seek medical attention.
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Pit vipers, like the rattlesnake, kill an average of one to two Texans every year. While not every snake is poisonous, doctors say that bite victims should always seek medical attention.

For most Texans, spring time gives us a small window of opportunity to trek outside in some bearable weather. It's almost become a tradition for Texans to use this precious time to  take photosin patches of bluebonnets. But just as we humans are beginning to shake off winter and go outside into the sun, so are are the snakes.

Anyone who's spent a significant time in the southwest can tell you, snake bites are a real danger.So what do you do if you encounter one?

Jill Heatleyis a veterinarian at Texas A&M, and she says that most snakes tend to be just as afraid of humans as we are of them. “Just step back, give it a minute,” Heatley says. “It doesn’t want to bother you any more than you want to bother it.”

But what if you are one of the  7,000 unlucky people in the U.S. who gets bitten?  Miguel Fernandez is the director of the  South Texas Poison Center at the  University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, and he says it's important not to over-think it.

“The first thing is don’t panic. You don't want to force faster circulation of the venom through your body,” Fernandez says.

Fernandez is quick to point out not to try any of the things you see in the movies: sucking out venom, rubbing it with ice, or trying to catch the snake for identification.

“Call the  poison center, 24 hours a day, free… they can do an assessment over the phone and tell you what the next best mode of action should be.”

Copyright 2020 KUT 90.5. To see more, visit KUT 90.5.

Alain Stephens heads up investigative reports for Texas Standard. A graduate of the University of North Texas and a veteran of two of the U.S. armed forces, Alain served both in the Coast Guard and the Air Force. His work has won accolades for exposing how the state pays those with disabilities below minimum wage, as well as the fast-tracking of juveniles to adult prisons. Contact Alain at astephens@kut.org, or (512) 232-6173.