Summer Means Snakes In North Texas
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - In one week, four children have been treated for snake bites at Cook Children's Medical Center in Fort Worth.
Local snake experts said it's snake season and they've seen an increase in calls to remove them from people's property.
"We get between three and five calls a day for snakes in the DFW area," Seth Roberson with Wildlife X Team International said.
Snakes are cold blooded and hibernate during the winter. In the spring and summer months, they search for food and breed.
As the summer sun beats down, they want to escape the extreme heat.
They can start hiding behind brush and move closer to water, going into things like pool filters and pool noodles.
Medical experts said adults know to avoid a snake if they see one, but that's not always the case with kids.
They said be sure to stress to your kids if you see a snake don't pick it up.
"Especially with the younger ages," Cook Children's Medical Center's Director of Trauma Services Christi Thornhill said.
"With some of our school age kids, especially boys, it may be because they're boys and there's a snake and they think that's cool."
So far this year, Cook Children's has treated 14 children for snake bites.
This week, 1-year-old Harrison Bakke was one of two rattlesnake bite victims.
He needed around 25 doses of antivenom after being bitten in the hand by a baby rattlesnake outside his home in Abilene.
Medical experts said if you're bitten, remain calm and get to the hospital.
