Brown Recluse Spider Bite

[HOSS]

Saturday evening I was loading fence posts from a stack on the ground onto a trailer. I got bit on the lower leg by a Brown Recluse spider. It felt like a wasp sting! It hurt for a longer period of time than a wasp though. Went to the doc and got some anti-biotics. I also got some muscle relaxers for my leg because the venom made my muscles tigthen and knot up. I also had pains come into my hips and a 2 day headache. Doc says that symptoms like this are common with recluse bites. Has anyone else had the same experience?

 

[TexasBred]

Hoss my sister was bitten by one several years ago...same symptoms....area around the bite eventually became red and swollen, drained some, eventually scabbed over and then an area almost the size of a quarter and about half inch deep basically rotted and fell out.....not a pretty site.

 

[pdfangus]

glad you got medical help.

My wife got bit on lower leg a few years ago and did not know by what and did not particularly worry about it. Mistake

Long story short.

three extended stay hopitalaizations later and many thousands of dollars in medical bills they were able to save her leg. she battled this thing for nearly two years before it healed. at one time when dressing the wound i could look in and see bone.

at last she has a nasty looking scar about the circumfrence of a tennis ball. that scar is so pretty to us because it is not oozing pus and corruption 24 7.

We had never much more than heard of a brown recluse until she got bit. they wer rare here but we got em now. Killed quite a few.

 

[1982vett]

My understanding is their bite is worse than that of a Black Widow.

Hope everything turns out well.

 

[Green Creek]

There are brown recluse spiders everywhere in Missouri. One thing I do is keep sticky traps out under furniture, in dark closets, basements, etc. It doesn't get them all but it sure collects a lot of them.

 

[HOSS]

Ya'll are making me nervous :cboy: I am keeoing an eye on it and it looks like the bite site is getting smaller. The center has dried up and scabbed over and the red area went from a nickel size down to about dime size. Muscles are getting looser so I hope things are going well. I am sposed to see the doc again in 3 or 4 days.

 

[bandit80]

Know a fella who got bit several times while laying in a crawl space running cable TV line to a house. His whole leg swelled up and got so stiff he couldn't walk. Took him a while to straighten out, but the antibiotics worked.

I got a tick bite here a couple weeks ago, and had a funny ring around the bite area. Have had tick bites before, but never the ring. I am taking antibiotics to take care of lyme disease as a precaution. Got the little bugger putting up hay. Knew I should have had my wife "check me for ticks".

Rule of thumb is anytime you have something on your body that doesn't look normal/right. Best to see a doctor. Catching whatever it is early is the best idea.

 

[cfpinz]

I keep one of my front end loader buckets turned upside down just outside the yard. Every time I put it on the tractor and turn it up I take a few minutes to kill all the black widows living in it. Last time there was 7.

 

[pdfangus]

Ya'll are making me nervous :cboy: I am keeoing an eye on it and it looks like the bite site is getting smaller. The center has dried up and scabbed over and the red area went from a nickel size down to about dime size. Muscles are getting looser so I hope things are going well. I am sposed to see the doc again in 3 or 4 days.

Since you have already been to the doc I would not worry about it. The people that I know that had trouble with it did not go to the doctor straight away. They waited around until it festered and by then they were in a whole heap of trouble.

that was my wife....

too hard between her ears to go to the doctor. Got a bit better and then it festered and blew open. all bets were off then.

 

[dun]

Wife got bitten on the shoulder in bed one night. Woke up in the morning all bright red and swollen. Took her straight to the doc and as soon as he walked in he said, brown recluse. The loaded her up with anti-inflamants and antibiotics and epinephrin(or something like it). She was sicker then a fiddles dog for a week but no other ill affects. BUT, the doc said with the reaction she had, with any sting or bite to really keep an eye on it and if it doesn;t get better within an hour or 2 to hustle into the hospital. He claims that it can sensitize you to the point where you can go into anaphelectic shock. Really Scarey to me.

 

[K2011]

We have a few Brown Recluses around here.....hope I never meet one

 

[Jogeephus]

Ya'll are making me nervous :cboy: I am keeoing an eye on it and it looks like the bite site is getting smaller. The center has dried up and scabbed over and the red area went from a nickel size down to about dime size. Muscles are getting looser so I hope things are going well. I am sposed to see the doc again in 3 or 4 days.

Since you have already been to the doc I would not worry about it. The people that I know that had trouble with it did not go to the doctor straight away. They waited around until it festered and by then they were in a whole heap of trouble.

that was my wife....

too hard between her ears to go to the doctor. Got a bit better and then it festered and blew open. all bets were off then.

That's what happened to my sister. She didn't go to doctor. Thought it was a wasp sting. It flamed up. Went to doc. He didn't know what it was and sent her home with some pills or something. She went to another doc who had done mission work and he recognized the sypmtoms and treated her. Every other day they had to drain it for I forget how long. It was a mess.

 

[Jogeephus]

Interesting avatar there jogee my son told me it looked like one of Milli Vanilli who ever that is?

No, its Earnest T. Bass, my mentor and hero. ;-) Heard of Milli Vanilla but can't say I know who he is. Singer?

 

[grannysoo]

I had an encounter with one of those around 20 years ago. Bit the back of my hand and it puffed up pretty big. Drained and rotted for a couple of months. Got a hard core in the center that had to be dug out every few days.

You only think it sounds nasty. Should have seen it.......

 

[EAT BEEF]

I have been bitten by them twice (if it can bite me it will).If yours is getting smaller and the heat is leaving it you should be ok,but keep a close eye on it.

I didn't have much luck with the antibiotics after three days so I went to another doctor he shocked around the bite with some sort of stun gun.This worked real well for me.The second time I got a bite I just treated myself with a tig welder this worked for me.I'm sure this sounds strange but it worked for me and if you goggle it you should find some info on shocking the bite aswell.Also some oldtimer told me to put orageno oil on the the bite I don't know if this works good on brown recluse bites but seems to help with other spider bites.It's still a good idea to go to the doctor,but you can just stop by the weld shop on the way home.The tig doesn't hurt near as bad as the stun gun.

 

[Jogeephus]

I've heard tale of people shocking snake bites with jumper cables too. Never witnessed it or actually known anyone to do it just have heard the electricity does something to the poison.

TMCM- Earnest isn't black he just needs a shower and a shave - kinda like me.

 

[Wewild]

I've heard tale of people shocking snake bites with jumper cables too. Never witnessed it or actually known anyone to do it just have heard the electricity does something to the poison.

I think that applies to bites that affect the central nervous system. I think a stun gun was mentioned as the method of treatment. I saw something on that a ways back. My memory might not be clear.