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Fortunately, even a poisonous snakebite does not
automatically mean that your horse will be in dire straits,
but if you wait before seeking treatment and an anti-venom
cannot be given quickly, your horse may sustain severe
tissue damage. Fatalities in horses do occur if a venomous
snake bite to the neck or nose occurs since this may
obstruct the airways to such an extent that the animal
suffocates.
 The best
course of action to take is to keep the horse calm so that the poison will not
travel through the body any faster than necessary. Do not remount your horse to
ride it back to the stable since this, too, will get the blood pumping faster
than is good. Instead, slowly walk your animal back to its trailer or stable. If
at all possible, see if a veterinarian can meet you on the riding trail. Some
riders swear by carrying six inch portions of a cut up garden hose that they
will lubricate and insert into the horse’s nostrils after a snake bite to allow
the animal to keep breathing as the swelling sets in. If your animal is bitten
on the leg, you should place a wide band around the affected limb to compress
the veins but not the arteries. By opening and re-closing the band every 15
minutes, you will slow down the spread of the poison while preventing damage to
the tissues.
Clean the bite wound with soap and water but do not resort to the method of
cutting open the bite wound to suck out the poison. While this is a staple of
the old Western movies, it only makes matters worse. Similarly, you should stay
away from compresses since these, too, have shown to accelerate the damage.
Instead, your veterinarian will be able to apply anti-inflammatory drugs,
anti-venom and also a tetanus booster to keep the horse healthy.
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