Ash survives snake bite
Ash has recovered well from her ordealSix year old Ash, a domestic short haired cat, was rushed to Adelaide Animal Hospital on the 29th of September after her owners found her outside not moving that morning. When Dr Bryony Senic examined Ash she was paralysed. Her pupils were very dilated and minimally responsive to light, and she was breathing very shallowly and rapidly. Dr Senic was concerned that Ash may have been bitten by a snake. Her owners had also previously seen a brown snake in their yard.
The venom from the bite of the brown snake causes a variety of signs. The venom contains neurotoxins (toxins that affect the nervous system) which can cause weakness, wobbliness and paralysis of the body and respiratory muscles and can even cause death. Also contained in the venom is a pro-coagulant which means that it can cause problems with the clotting of the blood resulting in haemorrhage from spontaneous bleeding, or secondary to trauma.
Ash was put onto oxygen immediately to help with her breathing and also put onto intravenous fluids at high rates to help 'flush out' the toxin from her system. Blood samples were taken to check her clotting times which thankfully were normal. Adrenaline and an antihistamine were administered before giving a vial of antivenom into her fluids to help neutralize the snake venom.
Ash required very intensive care in hospital. She needed to be turned regularly to change the side she was lying on and her eyes needed to have lubricating medications because she was not able to blink. Her bladder also needed manual expressing due to her paralysis to remove the urine. The toxin also causes pain and muscle damage so she was on high doses of analgesia for this.
Initially we were not able to feed Ash because she had lost her gag reflex and was at risk of aspirating the food into her lungs and causing an infection. However, over several days Ash gradually improved with gaining her eye blinks and gag reflexes back so she was able to start eating again. She also gained voluntary urinary function and her movement returned to her limbs and respiratory muscles. After four days in hospital she was finally able to go home on pain relief and under strict instructions to keep her inside. If she gets bitten again within 4-6 weeks after the first bite then it is fatal. Ash was under the constant care of her very dedicated owners and eventually made a full recovery and now is in great health.
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