'Snake selfie' goes horribly wrong
Digital Reporter
Wednesday, August 26, 2015, 3:17 PM - A California man may lose his hand after he picked up a rattlesnake and tried to take a picture with it.
Alex Gomez, 36, encountered the 1-metre-long snake on his family's ranch earlier this week.
According to Gomez's nephew, the snake was "angry" and "rattling" when he picked it up and put it around his neck.
The snake bit his hand which then swelled. Gomez has been taken to a nearby hospital, where he is being treated with antivenom.
His mother Deborah Gomez told reporters her son's actions were foolish.
"It could have bit his neck, and that would have been it," she said.
NOT THE FIRST TIME
In July, another California man was hit with a $153,000 hospital bill when he tried to take a selfie with a rattlesnake.
Remember the Rattlesnake bite story I did Monday? Guy just sent me this pic of his bill. Uhhhhhhh..... pic.twitter.com/ahK2W9KxVg
— Dan Haggerty (@10NewsHaggerty) July 16, 2015
The bulk of the costs were related to the antivenom treatment, which costs $2,300 per vial. He required twelve doses.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are roughly 7,000 to 8,000 venomous snake bites in the United States each year. Peak rattlesnake season runs from April to October.
Rattlesnakes are present in Canada but the massasauga rattlesnake, which is found in Ontario, is timid and will only attack when threatened.
The northern Pacific rattlesnake, which is found in interior B.C., will normally slither away to avoid confrontation.
Sources: CNN | The Associated Press
