What to Do if You Are Bitten by a Cottonmouth

Video Transcript

"Most important things to remember about a cottonmouth in case you get bitten by one, is that cottonmouths are venomous semi-aquatic snakes, also referred to as water moccasins. They are generally found in the southern America near water habitats or swamp lands. Now the first thing you want to do is call for emergency assistance. Now if you've got a GPS it will help emergency crews reach you in a faster state. That way it will help aid whatever is going to occur from the snakebite. Most people think you just need a snakebite kit and everything will be fine, but not for this snake. Don't suck out the venom, don't cover it. Don't apply a tourniquet or any kind of pressure. Make sure you want to treat the person for shock, kind of put them in a nice cool atmosphere, give them sips of water, just keep them calm and alert. You want to make sure to keep the person's heart above where the snakebite occurred. Say like it was on the leg, you want to have them kind of sit down that way the circulation of blood will lessen the flow of the venom around the body. And also once the emergency assistance shows up, make sure that person gets to the hospital as quickly as they can for a nice speedy recovery. Just keep those things in mind and hopefully you'll be able to survive a cottonmouth snakebite."