Myrtle Beach area pets are sniffing up snakes

For some pet owners along the Grand Strand, local snakes have become a nuisance.

July into late summer is the most active time of the year for snakes, and with it comes a threat to domestic animals. Tom Hesselbacher, practice manager at the Animal Emergency Hospital of the Strand, said the center treated six pets with snake bites just last week.

“It seems to be an exceptionally heavy snake bite season,” he said.

Hesselbacher said that while there is a “natural ebb and flow” to when his hospital usually treats more snake bites on cats and dogs, this year, the influx of injured pets seems steadier and seems to have begun earlier. VCA Palmetto Hospital also confirmed a higher amount of snakebites among pets this year, with about five to seven cases a week.

“Most of the snakebites we see occur when owners turn the dog off their leash in the back yard, if they have a fenced back yard,” Hesselbacher said. “Ideally, they should be walked on a leash all the time and away from any brushy area, but that’s not realistic for most people.”

A snake bite may mean a hefty veterinarian bill. Hesselbacher said that standard antivenom, which is effective in treating effects of copperhead, water moccasin and rattlesnake venom, costs around $450 a dose. Some pet owners have been particularly unlucky as well -- he said one recent family owned three dogs that had been bitten in one night.

Russell Cavender, a professional wildlife handler in Longs who goes by the name “The Snake Chaser,” said he has also had a busier season than normal this year.

“I’ve definitely gotten more snake calls than I have in a long time,” he said.

Cavender also said he’s received more calls for alligator removal than usual, and he suspects last year’s historic flood changed the travel patterns of animals, particularly venomous snakes, which sometimes hibernate near water in the winter.

Though snake sightings seem more common around Horry County, Kelly Funderburg, a registered nurse with the Palmetto Poison Center, said across the state, calls for snakebites are at normal levels.

She also said that while snakes are more common closer to the coast, avoiding them is relatively easy.

“Watch where you’re stepping,” Funderburg said. “Snakes are not that aggressive, and they would much rather run, but if you step on one, they will bite you.”

Additionally, Will Dillman, a herpetologist with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, said that snake populations are no larger than normal.

There is the possibility, Dillman said, that pop-up afternoon thunderstorms are causing movement by the snakes that puts them in the path of people. In other words, people (and pets) may just be stumbling on the snakes more often.

“More people are noticing them,” Dillman said, “and once one person hears about somebody else seeing a snake, they kind of go on alert.”

This story was originally published July 18, 2016 at 7:58 PM with the headline "Myrtle Beach area pets are sniffing up snakes."