In very recent posts the Sawyer Extractor has been discussed. I have two, for both human and horse first aid units. I have managed to use both. The first for a rattlesnake bite to a horse and then for the stingray laceration during my Island misadventure. There is no protocol given for post use sterilization. I washed both in iso alcohol,submerged in boiling water for about three minutes, allowed to airdry in sunshine and finished with another iso wash. Now I get leery looks when I mention their past use. They are a marvelous unit, And, at $15 I would gladly replace if needed for the service rendered. I've been dry bit TWICE by rattlesnakes. The scariest part were the advancing Major Burns wannabees with old rusty Cutter unit razor blades and tourniquets! the plastic parts are no worse for boiling. Am I overlooking anything ?<br><br>

Hey chris, i think your doing every thing right, What does the instrucions say about reuse?<br>It would be a good investment since i heard the only company in the world that makes rattle snake anti venom is going out of buisness! theres only a couple of outdoor stores in town and non of them ive been to carry the sawyer venom extractor. Who else sells them!?<br> Thanx chris, and o BTW You and Doug should write a Survival tips manual or something!<br>You could make alot of money (off of the people on this site any ways) and you could take past tips and instructions off this site it self and put it into a manual or something, Heh id buy 2 copies! 1 for camping and 1 for home Give it some thought and talk to doug! O well its my bed time and my mom's yelling at me sooo time to get off! <br><br>

Ron, My mom calls me at midnight, and asks why Im still up. The fact that she wakes me up seems irrelevent. The Sawyer is available from exploration products www.epcamps.com @ $15. They charge a flat $7 s/h , so unless you order a lot of gear it gets expensive. Try the Sawyer website for a local or AZ dealer. <br><br>

Your mom is funny chris i cracked up when i read that. :)<br>Thanx Chris<br><br>

Campmor has the sawyer kits for $11.99+s&h. I bought mine at a local Wal-Mart for $11.99. I have owned mine for a couple of wks and have used it once on a spider bite with great results. I cleaned mine out with alcohol and it seamed fine. I learned from it on this forum. Great place aint it!!!<br><br> Rick<br><br>

Hi guys I just found this page for the sawyer venom extractor.<br>Pretty good deal because of the FREE shipping.<br>http://www.backcountry-equipment.com/accessrs/a-emerg/venom_extractor.html<br><br>"Stay Frosty"

FWIW, I bought my Windmill ligher from www.backcountry-equipment.com. Shipped quickly, packed very well, no problems at all.<br><br>

Sorry that I missed this question when posted. I think that there are two issues that need to be addressed. The first is the disinfection of the unit once it has been used. As the unit is not packaged nor stored as "sterile", I assume that you want it to be "clean" and not carry a risk of transmitting various viral contagion.<br><br>Following the use of something that cannot be steam sterilized, I would wash the item with soap and water, taking care to remove all visible contamination. Following that, I would expose the item to a 10% solution of clorox. The clorox will kill viruses that we are concerned about, but will not sterilize the item. If you have access to a hospital that does ethylene oxide sterilization, you might sweet talk someone into processing it for you, but I think that might be overkill.<br><br>The second comment that I have is related to the use of the venom extractor for the treatment of a stingray "bite". The barb on a stingray's tail that causes injury is a serated edged spike that sits on the dorsum of the tail. It has a fibrous sheath that is coated in a jelly.<br><br>Aside from the obvious stab wound that the barb creates, the jelly has the effect of creating tremendous pain. Unfortunately, there is a direct toxic effect that, untreated, can cause a serious local wound healing problem, aside from the impressive risk of infection. The toxin is degraded by exposure to heat.<br><br>So, the way I treat the 20-30 stingray injuries that I see each year in my office is as follows:<br>1. Immerse the (usually) foot in hot water, obviously not hot enough to burn, but not warm. The immersion should continue until the pain is relieved with the foot removed from the water.<br>2. The wound is then explored locally to insure that there are no foreign bodies in the wound (ie sand, sheath, or piece of spine)<br>3. Irrigate the wound copiously with saline.<br>4. I surgically excise the wounds prior to step 3 and 4.<br>5. The wound is then closed with sutures.<br>6. ALL wounds in the ocean or estuaries merit antibiotic treatment. They are at very high risk for infection. Cipro is an excellent choice but carries a risk of photosensitivity.<br>Have fun<br><br><br><br>Jeffery S. Anderson, M.D.<br><br>

Thanks Doc! My account in Doug's writeup was a bit abbreviated. I did use the Sawyer extractor and plenty of sea water-lots and lots of sea water. It was one resource in abundance. I then heated some sea water in my boy archaeologist field box ( a .45 ammo can) and immersed Jeremy's foot. I had been taught to do this in the Coast Guard, but had forgotten the exact benefits . I then covered the wound with a loose gauze bandage, flushing the wound which I could'nt close daily. I had some tetracycline which I administered ( a note to folks reading this. Tag a patient with information on any meds given. When and if they're evacuated the Doctor's need to know what has been administered.) When I talked to Jeremy later, I learned there had been some tissue necrosis around the wound.<br><br>

It's marijuana time in these here hills!!! One of the traps these growers like to use is to catch several copperheads, thread line through there bodies, and tie them to the outer stalks of the patch. When the reapers come along "guess what happens"? Thinking of using my sawyer kit on someone else maid me think of blood and body fluid precautions. I'm adding two pair of rubber gloves to the kit. I know this doesn't seem much in the way of survival but survival comes in many forms.<br> After thought: powderfree gloves could be used for protection and as a container for water. Use them all the time for ice packs without leaking, and they stretch a long way. <br> <br><br>