Spiders and Scorpions and Snakes! Oh, My! Tips to Prepare for Venomous Bites and Stings
by Kari Carlisle
Photo by John A Carlisle Photography ©2012
Scenario: You have survived the apocalypse. Yippee! Now you have to survive the post-apocalypse. Yikes. There is still a world of dangers out there, and you may have little or no access to medical help. What to do…
Knowing and understanding a danger is the first step to facing that danger. If TV and movies are your main sources of information on venomous animals and insects, it’s time for some re-education. Popular culture has supplied a lot of incorrect information about venomous creatures, and you may be surprised to learn how minimal the danger really is. Hopefully, learning more about venomous species will both put your mind at ease and motivate you to be as prepared as you can be for the unlikely event of a potentially deadly bite or sting.
The first information you need to learn is what venomous species live in your area. Know what they look like. Learn their behavior and their habitat. Are they nocturnal? Seasonal? How do they administer their venom? It may comfort you to know that most snakes are not venomous, and in most areas of the world, snakebites are rare. Typically, venomous species will not chase or seek you out but will only attack if they feel threatened.
Research venom-related injury and death rates in your area. Many snakebites are “dry,” meaning no venom is injected. Most scorpions have relatively mild venom, no worse than a bee sting. You’re probably more likely to be hit by lightning or win the lottery (or survive the apocalypse?) than to be bitten by, let alone die from, a venomous creature.
Knowing what you’re up against will help you prevent your possible exposure. In addition to knowing what is living in your region, consider your post-apocalyptic lifestyle risk. Bugging out and being on the move may put you at higher risk than homesteading. Living in a rural area or near the edge of town may bring you closer to nature and all the hazards therein. On the other hand, don’t let fear drive you to Manhattan apartment living – that’s where the plague, robots, zombies and/or aliens are more likely to be.
If you’re staying put, there are many things you can do to decrease the possibility of a venomous creature gaining access to your property.
To keep spiders, scorpions and other insects at bay, a sprinkling of food-grade diatomaceous earth (DE) around your property on a regular basis will do the trick. DE is made up of fine particles of fossil shell that give creatures with an exoskeleton (a hard, outer shell) microscopic cuts that cause them to dehydrate and die. DE is incredibly effective and perfectly safe. DE can be purchased at some feed stores or online. Use food-grade DE because non-food-grade DE contains toxic chemicals. DE doesn’t go bad, so stock up.
To discourage snakes, keep in mind the kinds of habitat that snakes in your area prefer. Keep the area around your property free of weeds, debris and holes that snakes might use as a hideout or den. If snakes are a common hazard, consider building a block wall around your property. If you already have a block wall, look for holes or cracks that should be sealed. Water and food are major attractants for unwanted pests. Snakes have been known to keep pets away from their own water bowl. Elevating water bowls or provide water through a large drip waterer over a drain, and be sure to clean up any leftover food.
Despite all efforts, the worst can happen and you could fall prey to a venomous bite or sting. If you are bitten or stung, quickly move away from the creature to avoid any continuing threat. Unless you need to remove it from your property, do not attempt to capture or kill the creature. This will only increase your own risk of getting attacked.
Learn what happens after envenomation (injection of venom). Symptoms will vary from individual to individual, may appear within minutes or not for hours, and will vary depending on the origin of the bite/sting and the amount of venom injected. If you are doing everything you can to keep your immune system healthy and strong, you may survive and not even get very sick.
What will you do if medical care is not immediately available? You should consider what first aid you will administer if help is unavailable. If you want some amusement, search online for rattlesnake bite folk remedies, and you’ll find everything from rubbing raw onions to applying the raw side of a freshly slain chicken to the bite. In reality you can do more harm than good in applying first aid if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Old school first aid for snakebites would have you cutting through the skin, sucking out the venom and applying tourniquets. Now the Center for Disease Control would have you do none of these things. Modern advice is to keep immobile if possible because the faster the heart pumps, the quicker the venom moves through the body toward the heart where it can do the most damage. Cutting and sucking remove very little venom and just cause greater tissue damage and risk for infection. Tourniquets are usually improperly applied and end up causing limb loss, infection and gangrene, practically a death sentence in our post-apocalyptic scenario.
Other things you should not do for snakebite include applying ice or eating food. The most important thing you should do is not panic. Panic, or even just elevated stress, will cause the heartbeat to rise. Stay calm. Snakebites do not commonly lead to death.
Cleanse scorpion sting and spider bite wounds with clean water or saline solution. In any bite/sting, a severe allergic reaction is possible, so you may want to take an antihistamine such as Benadryl.
There are a few first aid oral remedies that will do no harm and may actually help. The homeopathic remedy, arnica montana, is an effective remedy for any injury to reduce pain and speed healing. Echinacea and vitamin C will help support the immune system. These remedies can be taken right away and regularly until you’re fully recovered.
A first aid remedy that has been successfully used for all venomous bites and stings is powdered, activated charcoal. As a poultice it can be applied directly to the bite/sting wound to draw out and neutralize the venom. Activated charcoal can also be mixed in water and taken internally. Numerous studies and testimonials bear out the amazing properties of activated charcoal in counteracting toxic substances including venom. Buy food-grade, powdered, activated charcoal (not the kind for your barbeque), and keep it on hand.
Activated charcoal is most effective during the first 24 hours after envenomation. After 24 hours, applying poultices of moistened bentonite clay will help continue to draw venom and bacteria and will speed healing at the wound site.
Our world is teeming with creeping, crawling, and flying creatures, some of which administer venomous bites and stings. Don’t be ruled by fear – simply be prepared.
Prepper’s Shopping List:Food-grade diatomaceous earthSaline solutionAntihistamineArnica montanaEchinaceaVitamin CActivated charcoalBentonite clay
Resources for Learning About Venomous SpeciesCenter for Disease Control – www.bt.cdc.govSociety for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles – www.ssarherps.orgU.S. National Library of Medicine – www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency
www.readmota.com
Photo by John A Carlisle Photography ©2012Scenario: You have survived the apocalypse. Yippee! Now you have to survive the post-apocalypse. Yikes. There is still a world of dangers out there, and you may have little or no access to medical help. What to do…
Knowing and understanding a danger is the first step to facing that danger. If TV and movies are your main sources of information on venomous animals and insects, it’s time for some re-education. Popular culture has supplied a lot of incorrect information about venomous creatures, and you may be surprised to learn how minimal the danger really is. Hopefully, learning more about venomous species will both put your mind at ease and motivate you to be as prepared as you can be for the unlikely event of a potentially deadly bite or sting.
The first information you need to learn is what venomous species live in your area. Know what they look like. Learn their behavior and their habitat. Are they nocturnal? Seasonal? How do they administer their venom? It may comfort you to know that most snakes are not venomous, and in most areas of the world, snakebites are rare. Typically, venomous species will not chase or seek you out but will only attack if they feel threatened.
Research venom-related injury and death rates in your area. Many snakebites are “dry,” meaning no venom is injected. Most scorpions have relatively mild venom, no worse than a bee sting. You’re probably more likely to be hit by lightning or win the lottery (or survive the apocalypse?) than to be bitten by, let alone die from, a venomous creature.
Knowing what you’re up against will help you prevent your possible exposure. In addition to knowing what is living in your region, consider your post-apocalyptic lifestyle risk. Bugging out and being on the move may put you at higher risk than homesteading. Living in a rural area or near the edge of town may bring you closer to nature and all the hazards therein. On the other hand, don’t let fear drive you to Manhattan apartment living – that’s where the plague, robots, zombies and/or aliens are more likely to be.
If you’re staying put, there are many things you can do to decrease the possibility of a venomous creature gaining access to your property.
To keep spiders, scorpions and other insects at bay, a sprinkling of food-grade diatomaceous earth (DE) around your property on a regular basis will do the trick. DE is made up of fine particles of fossil shell that give creatures with an exoskeleton (a hard, outer shell) microscopic cuts that cause them to dehydrate and die. DE is incredibly effective and perfectly safe. DE can be purchased at some feed stores or online. Use food-grade DE because non-food-grade DE contains toxic chemicals. DE doesn’t go bad, so stock up.
To discourage snakes, keep in mind the kinds of habitat that snakes in your area prefer. Keep the area around your property free of weeds, debris and holes that snakes might use as a hideout or den. If snakes are a common hazard, consider building a block wall around your property. If you already have a block wall, look for holes or cracks that should be sealed. Water and food are major attractants for unwanted pests. Snakes have been known to keep pets away from their own water bowl. Elevating water bowls or provide water through a large drip waterer over a drain, and be sure to clean up any leftover food.
Despite all efforts, the worst can happen and you could fall prey to a venomous bite or sting. If you are bitten or stung, quickly move away from the creature to avoid any continuing threat. Unless you need to remove it from your property, do not attempt to capture or kill the creature. This will only increase your own risk of getting attacked.
Learn what happens after envenomation (injection of venom). Symptoms will vary from individual to individual, may appear within minutes or not for hours, and will vary depending on the origin of the bite/sting and the amount of venom injected. If you are doing everything you can to keep your immune system healthy and strong, you may survive and not even get very sick.
What will you do if medical care is not immediately available? You should consider what first aid you will administer if help is unavailable. If you want some amusement, search online for rattlesnake bite folk remedies, and you’ll find everything from rubbing raw onions to applying the raw side of a freshly slain chicken to the bite. In reality you can do more harm than good in applying first aid if you don’t know what you’re doing.
Old school first aid for snakebites would have you cutting through the skin, sucking out the venom and applying tourniquets. Now the Center for Disease Control would have you do none of these things. Modern advice is to keep immobile if possible because the faster the heart pumps, the quicker the venom moves through the body toward the heart where it can do the most damage. Cutting and sucking remove very little venom and just cause greater tissue damage and risk for infection. Tourniquets are usually improperly applied and end up causing limb loss, infection and gangrene, practically a death sentence in our post-apocalyptic scenario.
Other things you should not do for snakebite include applying ice or eating food. The most important thing you should do is not panic. Panic, or even just elevated stress, will cause the heartbeat to rise. Stay calm. Snakebites do not commonly lead to death.
Cleanse scorpion sting and spider bite wounds with clean water or saline solution. In any bite/sting, a severe allergic reaction is possible, so you may want to take an antihistamine such as Benadryl.
There are a few first aid oral remedies that will do no harm and may actually help. The homeopathic remedy, arnica montana, is an effective remedy for any injury to reduce pain and speed healing. Echinacea and vitamin C will help support the immune system. These remedies can be taken right away and regularly until you’re fully recovered.
A first aid remedy that has been successfully used for all venomous bites and stings is powdered, activated charcoal. As a poultice it can be applied directly to the bite/sting wound to draw out and neutralize the venom. Activated charcoal can also be mixed in water and taken internally. Numerous studies and testimonials bear out the amazing properties of activated charcoal in counteracting toxic substances including venom. Buy food-grade, powdered, activated charcoal (not the kind for your barbeque), and keep it on hand.
Activated charcoal is most effective during the first 24 hours after envenomation. After 24 hours, applying poultices of moistened bentonite clay will help continue to draw venom and bacteria and will speed healing at the wound site.
Our world is teeming with creeping, crawling, and flying creatures, some of which administer venomous bites and stings. Don’t be ruled by fear – simply be prepared.
Prepper’s Shopping List:Food-grade diatomaceous earthSaline solutionAntihistamineArnica montanaEchinaceaVitamin CActivated charcoalBentonite clay
Resources for Learning About Venomous SpeciesCenter for Disease Control – www.bt.cdc.govSociety for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles – www.ssarherps.orgU.S. National Library of Medicine – www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency
www.readmota.com
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