[meteorite-list] Mojave Green Jeans - Images of a Killer Snake

From: Count Deiro <countdeiro_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Tue, 16 Nov 2010 16:34:52 -0500 (EST)
Message-ID: <11990700.1289943292976.JavaMail.root_at_elwamui-rustique.atl.sa.earthlink.net>

Hi Eric and Listees,

Access Google search for "Ten Deadliest Snakes" or "Most Dangerous Snakes" and you will find the Mohave Green listed and its venom compared in lethality to the other vipers. Thats where i gost the quote on comparison to the common Cobra on a volume basis.

I am not a physician and any comments I make about snake bites and their treatment are obtained from what I feel are reliable sources, but I caution all readers to speak to their health care provider for verification and advice.

CroFab is the usual anti-venom for this family of North American "rattlesnake" vipers. It is affective against the Mohave's venom although the Mohave can change the mix of components from bite to bite! CroFab is expensive and does not store well. Initial dosage is 4/6 vials. Followed in most cases with 4 more. The protocol for determining and administering the dosage and the amelioration of side effects is complicated and must be done in a hospital setting. Other agents are administered with this anti-venom. You need to be able to place a sodium chloride IV and maintain an airway surgically. Here is the protocol:

http://www.hosp.uky.edu/Pharmacy/formulary/criteria/Crotalidae_Polyvalent_Antivenin_Protocol.pdf

CroFab is derived from sheep products. No horse serum is used in it's manufacture. It contains a significant amount of assimilated Mercury. People allergic to papaya and pineapple enzymes should not be dosed. A Snake Bite Symptom Scoring System table is used to determine the dosage and maintenance.

So, you can forget about treating in the field with an anti-venom unless accompanied by a stocked ambulance and a physician experienced in treating envenomations.

The ten point schedule for the remote field treatment of snake bite was taught to me in military survival training and also learned over the years from my fellow desert dwellers here in the Mohave, including several who had survived a bite hours from professional help.

Some "experts" criticize aspects of the protocol (such as the effect of the ammonia and other enzymes in human urine) as of minor efficacy, maybe reducing envenomation by less than 10%. I say that the 10% might just be the borderline between living and dying. Using it can't hurt as long as your not stupid enough to cut the blood flow to a limb, or freeze it.

Watch where you put your hands and feet and don't walk close to creosote bushes...day or night.

Count Deiro
IMCA 3536


-----Original Message-----
>From: Meteorites USA <eric at meteoritesusa.com>
>Sent: Nov 16, 2010 12:21 PM
>To: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
>Subject: Re: [meteorite-list] Mojave Green Jeans - Images of a Killer Snake
>
>Hi List,
>
>Questions...
>
>Is it possible, since the Mojave Green is so deadly, to secure some sort
>of antivenin for use in an emergency while in the field?
>
>I've read the antivenin needs to be refrigerated? There are tiny 12v
>portable fridges you can have with you at camp... So if you're in the
>field, perhaps you could keep a vial(s) of antivenin (antivenom) in a
>portable fridge in the vehicle while on expedition in remote areas. (if
>this is legal of course) This might buy some time for a snakebite victim
>to get to a hospital.
>
>The nearest hospital to areas I hunt in the Mojave Desert is in Barstow,
>CA... It's a LONG way away, and if you're 1-2 hours down a dirt road in
>a very remote area of the Mojave desert, according to the rumors of the
>toxicity of the Mojave Green Rattlesnake venom, you'd be dead before you
>reach the main road...
>
>I searched and couldn't find anything that compares the venom from the
>Mojave Green to a Cobra, Mamba, or Australian Brown or any other
>venomous snake. Anyone know a good site which lists all venomous snakes
>for comparison purposes?
>
>Also, I read on the DoD website "...DoD officials said military medics
>carry antivenin. A soldier, sailor, airman or Marine bitten by a
>poisonous snake is generally only minutes away from treatment. Antivenin
>is an equine serum; persons sensitive to vaccines from horses could have
>an allergic reaction...."
>
>This leads me to believe it's possible to bring antivenin with you into
>the field. Are there restrictions for civilian use/transport/possession?
>If restrictions exist, are there exceptions...?
>
>Some people can have a severe allergic reaction to the antivenin which
>could cause the person to go into anaphylactic shock. I know of people
>who carry an EpiPen for Bee-Sting because they are allergic...
>http://www.epipen.com/ Can this rare condition be remedied by an EpiPen...?
>
>Thoughts, opinions, experiences?
>
>Regards,
>Eric
>
>
>
>
>
>On 11/15/2010 8:34 AM, Adam Hupe wrote:
>> Dear List Members,
>>
>> Just a note to warn meteorite hunters not to be too complacent.
>>
>> The most feared creature here in the Southwest is the Mojave Green Rattlesnake
>> and rightfully so considering its venom is 75 times more deadly than that of a
>> Cobra. You got about 1/2 hour to get anti-venom and if you survive a bite from
>> this fellow, you can count on around a $60,000.00 hospital bill. They come out
>> in the fall and you are most likely to run into one in the morning warming
>> itself in the sun. They hide in and around creosote bushes which are
>> everywhere.
>>
>>
>> I see people listening to I Pods or wearing metal detector headphones while
>> searching for meteorites, oblivious to their surroundings. The only warning we
>> got when we ran into this deadly snake was the shaking of its rattles. I have
>> heard Western Diamondbacks before and their rattle is much louder than the
>> Mojave Green. I had a lot more confidence searching with knee high Kevlar
>> snake boots until we ran into this fellow. The snake we ran into was up in the
>> bush waist high before it dropped to the ground and took up a strike posture.
>>
>>
>> We nicked named this large and fat, 4 foot plus snake "Mojave Green Jeans"
>> Luckily, I had an image stabilizer on my camera. I may have been shaking more
>> than the snake. The closer I got to it, the quicker the rattle shook. At one
>> point, it sounded like a constant whoosh instead of a rattle. I would back off
>> to about 6 feet away from it and then it would go silent for a while so I don't
>> think they give you much warning. Just two weeks ago, we ran into a snake we
>> were unable to identify which struck out at my brother in laws magnetic cane.
>> It was also hidden in a bush. It wasn't a rattler but had some pretty wild
>> looking checker board pattern.
>>
>> Meet Mojave Green Jeans:
>> http://themeteoritesite.com/AMojaveGreen-a.jpg
>>
>> I Counted 11 Rattles, A Very Mature Snake:
>> http://themeteoritesite.com/AMojaveGreen-b.jpg
>>
>> Side View:
>> http://themeteoritesite.com/AMojaveGreen-c.jpg
>>
>> The Business End - Poised To Strike:
>> http://themeteoritesite.com/AMojaveGreen-d.jpg
>>
>> Be Careful!
>>
>> Happy Hunting,
>>
>> Adam
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>>
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Received on Tue 16 Nov 2010 04:34:52 PM PST