# Snakes



## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

It will be that time before we know it. Just wondering if anyone on the forum has ever taken their dog to a snake avoidance clinic or have their dogs immunized with the rattlesnake vaccine. I live in Texas and certain areas have rattlesnakes.


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## redbirddog (Apr 23, 2010)

TexasRed,


http://redbirddog.blogspot.com/2011/07/rattlesnake-adversion-training.html

Money well spent! My Vizslas learned fast. Some other breeds, not so fast.

Didn't immunize. Some friends have. Talked to an old time vet who has treated rattlesnake bites for years. His view was that dogs may get sick but it is seldom fatal. That is for the Western rattlesnake most common here in Northern California. Others, like the Mojave Green rattlesnake are 10 times more letal. Each region of the country might be different. I'd check with your vet on what happens when dogs the size of a Vizsla get bit and then plan accordingly.

My .02


RBD


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## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

I do both vaccine and avoidance with mine. In the areas we hunt if a dog is bitten on the head there is a good chance he will live. If bitten any other place without the vaccine most don't make it. The avoidance training worked with two of my dogs this past summer. The third learned don't mess with snakes when your on a check cord. If its free run then they are fair game. She also thought any time I put a checkcord on her after the training that we must be doing avoidance. I would spend the first 10 minutes of training with her sucked up to my leg till she would realize that we were bird training. The trainer offered to do a private session with her in a large fenced area instead of the normal way on a check cord. I declined his offer at that time to build her confidence back up. I've seen him work many dogs and know that he is running the clinic right and that this can happen. He runs clinics almost every weekend over the summer with 20-100 per weekend and this seldom ever happens. I still don't know if I will take him up on his offer this summer. If I don't it will cut her out of a lot of the hunts.


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## threefsh (Apr 25, 2011)

My hubby came across a baby rattle snake the other day while hiking.  How early can you do the avoidance training? Riley is 5 & 1/2 months old now.


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## redbirddog (Apr 23, 2010)

http://socalrattlesnakeavoidancetraining.com/

From their website:

"Any breed or size dog will benefit from this training. With our process, we have successfully trained dogs as large as Mastiffs and Great Danes, to as small as Teacup Maltese and Chihuahuas. We generally recommend dogs be at least 6 months old prior to training so that they are developmentally mature enough to make the correct associations. That being said, different breeds and even individuals mature at different rates so we will evaluate young dogs 5-8 months old on the day to make sure prior to training."


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## redbirddog (Apr 23, 2010)

Enjoy your hike, sorry to miss out.

"On a side note, I wanted to give a thank you and testimonial for making us aware of the rattlesnake aversion training. I got to see the training put to the test last night and boy was I glad that we had done it. Within 5 mins of starting our hike at Shell Ridge, I walked past a medium-sized rattlesnake, although Tobi had run right past it without notice. About 10 mins later we encountered a coyote that was much braver than any I’ve come across thus far. Thank goodness Tobi has a decent recall as he listened to my “leave it” and “come” even though I could tell he wanted to chase after the coyote. The coyote then tracked us, with Tobi at my side, for about half a mile before I went through the cattle gate. I was more nervous than I would like to admit. On the backside of the ridge, I saw a garter snake and was relieved that it wasn’t a rattler. As we were finishing up our hike, I see Tobi stop on the trail about 30 feet in front of me. It looked like there might be something on the trail, but I couldn’t make it out. All of a sudden, Tobi jumps about 2 feet in the air and I realize it is an adult rattlesnake. My initial thought upon seeing him jump was that he might’ve gotten bit, but it appeared that the snake was outstretched with it’s mouth away from Tobi, so I was hopeful that it was just the training kicking into gear. Tobi, the ever-curious pup, started to circle back around towards the snake, so I gave him a good jolt with the training collar and he immediately turned away from the snake…we continued on our way and Tobi proceeded to jump and flinch at anything remotely resembling a snake, such as several sticks on the trail. After watching him closely for several hours, he clearly did not get bit and although my nerves were shot, I had a thought that the $75 for rattlesnake aversion training was money very well spent. So thank you. 

Happy Memorial Day weekend! 

Denise"

It is rattlesnake season. Is your dog ready for it?

RBD


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