Articles with snake bites

Snake Bites in Dogs: Protect Your Dog From Snake Bites

Do you live in or travel to areas that are home to venomous snakes? Do you know how to protect your dog from snake bites? I’ve been neighbors with rattlesnakes, copperheads, and water moccasins, and have treated dogs that have been bitten by some if not all of these species. These cases can be incredibly rewarding or heartbreaking. It all…

by Dr. Jennifer Coates, DVM

Dog Lameness Assumption Trap: Tosha’s Snake Bite

Acute and chronic lameness are likely to have different causes. That doesn’t mean that figuring out what happened is easy. Past experiences, things we read and hear breed biases. When your dog starts limping, don’t jump to conclusions; make sure you know what is really happening. Thank you, Kevin, for sharing Tosha’s story. Tosha’s story It all started with a…

by Jana Rade

Are Venomous Bites an Emergency?

What kind of snakes or spiders your dog might encounter depends on where you live. Snake bites Some of the most dangerous species of snakes include rattlesnakes, copperheads, and water moccasins. The outcome depends on the amount of venom injected, location, size of the dog … but I would treat any and all of these as an emergency because the sooner…

by Jana Rade

Laser Therapy for Snake Bites: Something You Wouldn’t Think Cold Laser Could Be Good For

Lasers are one of the most underutilized treatment modalities in the veterinary world. A cold laser is one of the safest and most effective devices to utilize. Laser treatment offers the following benefits: increases healing decreases pain reduces unwanted scar tissue decreases bacterial counts reduces inflammation, etc. Jasmine was getting cold laser along with her physical therapy but when she…

by Jana Rade

Jana Rade

I am a graphic designer by day, dog health advocate, dog writer, member of the Dog Writers Association of America, and an award-winning author in my spare time. Jasmine, the Rottweiler of my life, was the largest female from her litter. We thought we were getting a healthy dog. Getting a puppy from a backyard breeder was our first mistake. Endless veterinary visits without a diagnosis or useful treatment later, I realized that I had to take Jasmine's health care into my own hands. I learned the hard way that simply seeing a vet is not always enough. There is more to finding a good vet than finding the closest clinic down the street. And, sadly, there is more to advocating for your dog's health than visiting a veterinarian. It should be enough, but it often is not. With Jasmine, it took five years to finally get a diagnosis for her initial issue. Unfortunately, other problems had snowballed for that in the meantime. Jasmine's health challenges became a crash course in understanding dog health issues and how to go about getting a proper diagnosis and treatment. I had to learn, and I had to learn fast. Helping others through my challenges and experience has become my mission and Jasmine's legacy. I now try to help people recognize and understand signs of illness in their dogs, how to work with their veterinarian, and when to seek a second opinion. My goal is to use 20 years of hard-earned experience to save others from the steep curve of having to learn things the hard way, as I did.

View Full Profile →