Many people don't realize that snake venom moves through the lymph system, NOT the veins, and they immediately want to put on a tight, blood-restricting tourniquet.

DON'T DO IT!

These seem to be generally accepted instructions (from the U of MI - http://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/pa/pa_bitesnak_hhg.htm ):

"Remove any rings or bracelets. If you are more than 2 hours from the hospital, put a lymphatic tourniquet between the bite and the heart, at least 2 inches above the bite. A lymphatic tourniquet stops lymph flow through the lymph vessels. Use a wide band such as an elastic wrap or stocking. Make it snug but not tight enough to stop blood flow in the veins or arteries. If the veins stand out, the tourniquet is too tight. If the hand or foot turns white or the pulse disappears, the tourniquet is much too tight. The American Red Cross recommends that you not release the tourniquet until after antivenin has been given.

They also say that if the snake has been killed, make SURE it's dead, and take it to the hospital with you for ID (most people don't seem to know a rattler from a coral snake from a refrigerator & the antivenin can be different).

Here in W WA, if you do get bitten by a poisonous snake, you're pretty much SOOL, as the hospitals don't carry much (if any) antivenin. Why? Because "there aren't any poisonous snake here". I'll bet the delivery fee from E WA or CA is horrendous. Slow, too, considering the circumstances....

Sue