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Wildlife Officers Waiting To Speak To Hospitalized Snakebite Victim

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By KEITH MORELLI

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 3, 2008

TAMPA - Florida wildlife officers will wait until next week to speak with a Bushnell man who was in critical condition after he was bitten by a pet cobra.

Jack Eugene Hildreth, 50, was bitten on the thumb Wednesday and was admitted to Orlando Regional Medical Center on Thursday.

The Miami-Dade County Fire Rescue Venom Response Team, which stores and ships antivenin for all kinds of bites, shipped 20 vials of cobra antivenin to the hospital.

Team chief Al Cruz said Friday that some bite patients require less antivenin and some require twice as much.

Cruz said that while calls for antivenin across the southeast has risen since the team was formed 10 years ago, bites from exotic species like the cobra bite in Bushnell make up only 2 percent of its business.

Antivenins are as varied as venomous snakes. The venom response team's antivenin bank has antidotes for every venomous snake. People bitten by exotic snakes should make note of what kind of snake it is, Cruz said.

But for anyone bitten by an indigenous snake, except for a coral snake, identifying the viper makes no difference because the antivenin administered is the same, he said.

The venom response team also provides antidotes for other types of bites, including those from venomous arachnids like black widow and brown recluse spiders.

Calls for antivenins for exotic snake bites are few because of the difficulty in getting permits to keep such animals, he said. The regulations require experience in handling exotic species and most who have permits know what they're doing, Cruz said.

During the past few years, bites from venomous snakes indigenous to Florida have decreased, he said, thanks in part to education about how to avoid contact.

Snake bites are most common between April and October, when local reptiles become more active.

Hildreth, 50, called 911 after midnight Wednesday saying he had been bitten by his pet Indian cobra. He was conscious when paramedics arrived but lost consciousness soon after, authorities said.

Hildreth has a permit, which expires Jan. 7, from the state to possess venomous reptiles.

Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 259-7760 or kmorelli@tampatrib.com.

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