ABILENE, TX (RNN) – A 1-year-old boy is recovering after a rattlesnake bit his right hand, for which he underwent surgery and received 19 vials of antivenom – with more to come, according to KTXS.
Harrison Bakke, 1, is being treated for the snake bite at Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth, TX, following the Tuesday afternoon incident.
The boy is expected to make a full recovery. The swelling in his bitten right hand has started to go down, according to his mother, Erin Bakke.
Doctors were worried about the circulation in his hand, so they made two small incisions to release some of the blood and fluid, KTXS reported.
Harrison has also received 19 vials of antivenom. He is expected to need six more before he’s released from the hospital.
The 1-year-old was playing outside with his toys when he was bitten.
The 1-year-old Abilene boy who was bitten by a rattlesnake has received 19 vials of anti-venom and undergone surgery. https://t.co/JBGUPgtIHj pic.twitter.com/Qex8PTfLoe
— KTXS News (@KTXS_News) June 27, 2018
"The hard part is we normally go out and take a look around [for snakes]. The kids don't normally go out by themselves. They opened the door themselves while I wasn't in the room, so he went out ahead of me," Bakke told KTXS.
The boy’s mother said she was heading outside when she heard him scream.
"I didn't see the snake at first. I saw his [right] hand was bleeding, took him in, rinsed it off. It looked like a snake bite," Bakke said.
Bakke found the snake on the patio against the house, next to her children’s slide and toys. She called 911, where she was told to have the 1-year-old sit down and keep calm.
The snake was captured by Abilene, TX, firefighters, who cut off its head and took it to the hospital along with Harrison, according to the Abilene Reporter-News.
Game warden James Cummings told the Reporter-News that an increased rodent population and the recent heat in the city has led to increased snake activity.
Copyright 2018 Raycom News Network. All rights reserved.
