A dog bitten by a deadly snake in South Africa has been dramatically saved after her owners went on a wild goose chase to find the antivenom, which was at an animal park over 800 miles away.
Miley the dog, who is about a year old, had been on a farm in Cape Town last Friday when she was bitten by the snake. When the dog began bleeding from the wound, her owners noticed the Boomslang in the nearby area, local South African news outlet Kormorant reported.
Boomslangs are a highly venomous snake native to sub-Saharan Africa. The snake is extremely slender and has impeccable camouflage skills, meaning they are not always easy to spot. Its venom can kill a human in just small amounts, and it can be equally fatal to dogs and other animals.
The owner, named on Facebook as Desire, initiated a frantic search for some antivenom for the snake species and found that the Hartbeespoort Dam Snake and Animal Park, which was just under 800 miles away, had what they needed.
"We immediately rushed her to the veterinarian. We keep antivenom for puff adders and cobras because we have lost dogs before, but not for Boomslang. The vets told us we had very little chance of obtaining antivenom for Boomslang," the dogs owner told Kormorant.
By the next day, the dog's nose had started bleeding, a sure sign that the venom was taking its toll. The owners continued to try everything to track down the antivenom they needed. Finally, they found some hope.
She continued: "My husband tracked a single vial to Hartbeespoort Snake and Animal Park. We spoke to Jason Seale and he said he would be able to send the vial to Lanseria Airport immediately. Now, we just had to find someone who was flying to Cape Town to bring it with."
They turned to social media to beg people to help. And they were in luck. Within 20 minutes a strange from Lanseria offered to bring the vial of antivenom to them.
"Within four hours after first asking for help, we had the antivenom in our hands and we rushed to the vet who had already prepared Miley! The venom changed hands seven times before it reached us."
Seale, director of the Hartbeespoort Snake and Animal Park and a member of Herpetological Association of Africa, told Kormorant that the park had two bottles of expired antivenom for Boomslang in their possession. While the expired antivenom can't be used on humans, it proved to be life saving for Miley the dog.
"We had two vials of expired anti-venom. The anti-venom is still effective but it is not allowed to be used for human treatment," Seale told the news outlet. We donate it for animal use. We are happy to help pet owners when we can."
The owners told the news outlet that while Miley still has a few symptoms, she is almost entirely better.
"Her story travelled worldwide and we cannot express our gratitude to all the strangers who came to our assistance," they said. "If it wasn't for all these people out there, Miley would not be with us today. Our sincere gratitude to Jason of the snake park who was ready to help us."
South Africa's snake season is currently in full swing, meaning the serpents are more active. Venomous snakes cause more conflict during this time as it is more often that humans, and their pets, encounter them in the warmer, summer months.
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Robyn White is a Newsweek Nature Reporter based in London, UK. Her focus is reporting on wildlife, science and the ... Read more
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