Please watch your step!!!

These pictures are not of the actual snake but look exactly like the one that bit my Rufus yesterday morning!

Rufus, my male standard doxie was hunting in the ivy next to the back porch like he does every time he goes outside...no matter how many times I scold him for it! Roxy, the little girl on his right (she is 13 years old now) was close by. We just happened to be outside and I saw the whole thing...I did not see the snake at the time, but knew from Rufus' reaction what had happened. My husband and I took a walking stick and a shovel and poked and poked around the area where Rufus was attacked. After a few minutes, lo and behold, a beautiful snake's back appeared. Here was the culprit! This is also the area that I go through to turn on the hose to water my tomatoes every day...

Needless to say, we rushed him to the Vet as fast as we could. By the time I picked him up at 5:00 p.m., he was horribly swollen-he looked like a huge pot-bellied pig around his head and neck!

This is the second time a precious pet of mine has been bitten by a Copperhead snake...our Bailey (a Schnauzer who has since passed away of old age) was bitten twice on her snout and had a terrible time, as well! Thankfully, this was years ago. I was almost bitten a few years ago, myself! I have been reading today about all the dogs that have been bitten by these snakes and according to all the reports, all you have to do is give them an antihistamine and they will be good as new the next day...with little or no pain and minimal swelling! NOT!!! Please be very careful where you step...watch out for your animals and even more for your children!!! They can hide and be invisible...we did not see the snake until it appeared like magic in the ivy! People rarely die from being bitten by these snakes, but the damage is still pretty bad...extreme pain and scarring and sometimes loss of use of the appendage, as in fingers or toes...not to mention high chance of secondary infection. Here's the old nurse talking...sorry!

I would never kill any snake I see, as some people do; I actually like non-poisonous snakes - snakes are valuable in that they do a great service in our ecosystem -but, the way I see it...this snake hurt one of my family so it was destroyed! What do you think?