Brown Recluse
SNAFU.... Pretty sure I was bit by one about two hours ago. Opened the garage door stepped in with my right foot and felt something on my right big toe, slung it off and cursed. Could use a few prayers and what not as I just started a new job and have no insurance, going to wait a few more hours for signs of swelling before I go to the er , pretty sure he got me though it just does not feel right kind of tingly. Thanks for letting me vent everybody, sob ambushed me!
Adam
Adam
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Any one ever hear of a Brown Recluse infestation like this?
What are all of those spiders eating to be able to still live in the house?
I've got a nasty scar on my leg from one of the wee beasties never even felt the bite.
"She told St. Louis television station KMOV-TV in 2012 the spiders "started bleeding out of the walls," and at least two pest control companies were unable to eradicate the infestation.
The couple filed a claim in 2008 with their insurance company, State Farm, and a lawsuit against the home's previous owners for not disclosing the brown recluse problem.
At a civil trial in St. Charles County in October 2011, University of Kansas biology professor Jamel Sandidge - considered one of the nation's leading brown recluse researchers - estimated there were between 4,500 and 6,000 spiders in the home. Making matters worse, he said, those calculations were made in the winter when the spiders are least active.
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Adam,
Get a magnifying glass and check out the area where you think you may have been bitten. You are looking for two little, tiny puncture marks. If you see them, draw a circle around them with a ballpoint. Did you actually see the spider and ID it?
If you see a bite, I suggest you go to a hospital emergency room, or at the very least google up treatment for brown recluse bite.
Several years ago a friend of mine was bitten on the shin by a brown recluse and lost a LOT of tissue. The area around the bite just went septic, liquified and sloughed off. He had a tough time of it.0 -
If thats what it was that bit you, I wouldn't wait to see what happens next..
Too bad you don't have the evidence of what type of eight legged friend it was.. would be helpful for doctor..0 -
Chaecked for bite marks with magnifying glass and a mini-mag light, not sure if present or not. My toe does feel weird though, checked webmd and they said symptoms usually appear within 4 to 6 hours and i'm knocking on four. Scary photos on there of bites on arms and legs, afraid to think of what would happen if bit on a toe.
Adam0 -
Adam;
I get bitten a couple of times a year in my shop, which has some stuff stored overhead that I should throw out....
Anyhow, there's usually no swelling, and the pain is minimal for a while, then an area about 1/8th to 3/16ths of an inch begins to discolor, eventually to leave a hole, which again, will eventually fill back up with flesh. Sounds worse than it is, and most spider bites are painless to begin with, since their fangs are so tiny you'll never feel them.
Let's hope your bite is at worst, a 'shop spider' bite, and not a Fiddler.
I've heard though, that with a Brown Recluse, the pain is pretty heavy from the get go. Had a neighbor bitten on each leg when putting on a pair of old rubber boots. He almost lost both of them (the legs, that is).
Sahagan0 -
Quote by Wolf: tha area around the bite just went septic .... "
My neighbor was picking grapes from his arbor and stuck his hand in among some leaves and a copperhead got him in the back of the hand. Same symptoms, around the two punctures the flesh started to slough off, the doctors treated it, couldn't stop the flesh degeneration. Thought he may lose the hand. Did lose a lot of tissue. I've been told that the venom from that spider has some of the same properties as the venom of the copperhead. Hope this proves a false alarm, but would watch it closely.0 -
I was bitten in SE Asia by a cousin of the Brown Recluse. I "shined it on" for a couple of weeks, then spent three weeks in Balboa Naval Hospital, with the docs talking about amputation. I would not take a chance on a bite.
Get thee to a Hospital !!!!!!!!!!
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Prayers here Krusty, and go see a doctor NOW!
Trinity +++0 -
Prayers said. Seek medical attention, the sooner the better! 0 -
Sounds to me like its worth a trip to the hospital, just to make sure.[:0][:0] 0 -
Brown recluse spider venom causes tissue necrosis within hours. Even treated, there is a very real chance the toe is already lost. Get in there now to keep from losing the foot. 0 -
Are you certain that you live in the range of the reculuse? Doctors all over the country diagnose recluse bites, and the recluse has a very limited range.
http://geo-outdoors.info/brown_recluse.htm
IF you do not live in the range, chances are very good you do not have a recluse bite.0 -
It's been around 14 hours now and there is very little swelling if any, maybe a little redness on the area. Thank you all for the concern, one would imagine symptoms would show by now. I was worried enough last night to go to the er but I fell asleep with my leg elevated while reading band o brothers. Thanks again everyone hopefully things will be back to normal soon.
Adam0 -
He Dog's posted web site is probably correct, but the only Brown Recluse found in Washington State is said to have come up from California. It was in the back of a semi-truck and was dead. Here we have the "agressive brown house spider"(words to that effect). It's bite is not good and one needs to see a MD sap. You probably have spiders whose bites are also not good. Have you left for a doctor yet? 0 -
Not yet, going to work at six, no signs of blistering or pain and what not. Want some positive sign of the severity so I can haul butt
to the er.0 -
Go to the hardware store or home improvement store and buy a bunch of those "glue boards" or "sticky boards" that are nothing but a thin sheet of paperboard (about as thick as a playing card) that have some very, very sticky glue coated on one side. Place those boards around the area in the house where you got bit (best to put them under something like dresser, cabinent, etc). Wait a few days and check and see what kind of critters you caught and this will tell you what kind of critters are running around your dewelling ready to bite you or a family member.
Everybody here should do this. And of course seek medical treatment for the bite you have if warranted. Good luck.0 -
tr fox - that is very good advice! I plan to follow your suggestion! 0 -
quote:Originally posted by Old-Colts
tr fox - that is very good advice! I plan to follow your suggestion!
Always glad to be of any help[:)]0 -
Washington has the Hobo spider whose bite is also pretty serious. There used to be only two spiders of medical importance in the US until this guy showed up.
http://www.onewest.net/~dkv/hobospider/0 -
quote:Originally posted by tr fox
Go to the hardware store or home improvement store and buy a bunch of those "glue boards" or "sticky boards" that are nothing but a thin sheet of paperboard (about as thick as a playing card) that have some very, very sticky glue coated on one side. Place those boards around the area in the house where you got bit (best to put them under something like dresser, cabinent, etc). Wait a few days and check and see what kind of critters you caught and this will tell you what kind of critters are running around your dewelling ready to bite you or a family member.
Everybody here should do this. And of course seek medical treatment for the bite you have if warranted. Good luck.
I have them all over the house and they regularly fill up with Hobo Spiders.0 -
quote:Originally posted by Chris8161
quote:Originally posted by tr fox
Go to the hardware store or home improvement store and buy a bunch of those "glue boards" or "sticky boards" that are nothing but a thin sheet of paperboard (about as thick as a playing card) that have some very, very sticky glue coated on one side. Place those boards around the area in the house where you got bit (best to put them under something like dresser, cabinent, etc). Wait a few days and check and see what kind of critters you caught and this will tell you what kind of critters are running around your dewelling ready to bite you or a family member.
Everybody here should do this. And of course seek medical treatment for the bite you have if warranted. Good luck.
I have them all over the house and they regularly fill up with Hobo Spiders.
Keep on putting those traps out. Each Hobo Spider you catch is one less that might bite some family member. In addition, I believe that as the glue board starts to fill up with spiders, that attracts more and more spiders to get trapped. I believe the trapped spiders emit some distress sound or oder that summons their buddies to help them or having the trapped spider presents an easy meal for another spider. But either way, I believe that trapped spiders on the glue board helps trap other spiders.
Spend $20 or $30 dollars on those glue boards and put them EVERYWHERE. You just might eliminate any spider problem by doing this. Also be sure you have sealed the outside of your house the best you can so that it is at least a little difficult for more spiders to enter your house.
I believe this worked for me in regards to Brown Recluse spiders.0 -
We also have our house sprayed every three months. They use that powder made from the Chersantimum(spelling?) flower. Only harmfull to the bugs. 0 -
Pyrithrin? You can buy that over the counter and do it yourself.
Extriminators are a rip. They don't exterminate, they just want to come back every month and spray the same stuff you can. for termites you need a good job done, for everything else you can do as well, for a fraction of the cost.0 -
quote:Originally posted by mcaso
We also have our house sprayed every three months. They use that powder made from the Chersantimum(spelling?) flower. Only harmfull to the bugs.
I have come to believe that having your house sprayed will not by itself rid your house of spiders. Reason being that any spraying that is weak enough to allow people to stay/reenter the house within a few hours (or not even leave in the first place) is too weak to kill spiders unless it is sprayed directly on the spiders. Reason being that spiders walk around on their long legs and do not usually come in direct contact with the insecticide that is sprayed around the house. In addition, unlike most bugs, spiders do not groom themselves. That means that as the bug walks around, it picks up the insecticide on its feet and when it grooms itself, at that point it is eating the insectcide. Spiders do not do this.
I think the only way spraying insecticide around your house will rid it of spiders is because of the spiders eating bugs that have contacted the insecticide. Or, if and after the insecticide does kill all/most of the non-spider bugs, then the spiders will die from hunger (can take almost a year for that) or just up and leave to look for other foot sources.
But remember, if most of the bugs are killed, I would guess that some of the spiders that usually remain hidden away from your family might just start coming out looking for food and encounter your family.
Regardless of what else you do, putting down lots of sticky boards will probably do the most good for spiders.0 -
Update..... It's about 5pm here in Ga and I'm happy to report that my toe has not fallen off yet and no signs of any serious damage have come up. Thanks to all for the thoughts and advice I sincerely appreciate them all. The glue boards is a great idea and one that will be implemented soon.
Adam0 -
Glad to hear you're okay. Be careful from now on and watch where you put your extremities![:D] 0 -
Good for you krusty. You handled your problem in a rational manner.
For snakebites, it is the same deal. If you don't get a lot of swelling, you do not have a snakebite with poison in it. This swelling will occur pretty quickly, I would say within 30 minutes to an hour.
Even when bitten by poisonous snakes, about half the time the bite will not be envenomated.
Rushing to the ER with a snake bite is not necessarily the end of a person's problems. Some people get severe allergic reactions to the anitvenom.0 -
Careful Allen there are recorded cases of asymptomatic pit viper bites resulting in death. I gave a deposition (unpaid) in a lawsuit when a child died of rattlesnake bite believed by the doctor to be a dry (no venom injected bite). He released the boy who went home and later died of envenomation. The lad never exhibited the pain, swelling, discoloration and advance of clinical signs typical of pit viper envenomation. 0 -
crusty311: Be DAMN carefull. My 50 year old son was bitten by a brown recluse spider. He too thought little of it till he broke out in large sores a bit later which infected his pancreas and other organs 6 years ago. He has had lenghty stays in the hospital (over 16 of them) and is
now on S.S. disibility. Dont fool around, keep a good eye on things.0 -
"Careful Allen there are recorded cases of asymptomatic pit viper bites resulting in death. I gave a deposition (unpaid) in a lawsuit when a child died of rattlesnake bite believed by the doctor to be a dry (no venom injected bite). He released the boy who went home and later died of envenomation. The lad never exhibited the pain, swelling, discoloration and advance of clinical signs typical of pit viper envenomation."
Thanks for that info, HeDog. I thought you always got swelling. I guess I had the same training as that unfortunate ER doc.0
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