KTBS3 (Shreveport, Lousiana) 22 December 04 Man dies after being bitten by pet snake
A Red River Parish man has died after being bitten by a poisonous snake he kept as a pet.
Buddy Jones had two timber rattlers in a glass cage in the back of his pawn shop in Coushatta. One had been his pet for about nine years and he had the other for about three years.
Jones was feeding the younger snake a rat shortly after noon on Tuesday when the snake bit him in the hand, Red River Sheriff Johnny Ray Norman said. The snake bite hit a vein, Norman said.
Jones had trouble breathing and drove himself to a clinic in Coushatta. He was then transferred to Shreveport hospital but died Tuesday night.
Jones kept several reptiles in cages in the back of his store and people often went back to see them.
"It was kind of a novelty with him," Norman said.
http://www.ktbs.com/news-detail.html?cityid=1&hid=25255
TIMES-PICAYUNE (New Orlerans, Louisiana) 22 December 04 Red River Parish man dies after bite from pet snake
Coushatta, La. (AP): A Red River Parish man who kept caged rattlesnakes in the back of his pawn ship died after one of the rattlers bit him in the hand while he was feeding it.
B.O. "Buddy" Jones III died Tuesday night, less than 12 hours after he was bitten by the timber rattler, Sheriff Johnny Ray Norman said.
Jones was feeding a rat to the snake, and its fang hit a vein in his hand, Norman said. Jones drove himself to a clinic in Coushatta because he was having trouble breathing, and was transferred to a Shreveport hospital, where he died.
Jones owned the snake for about three years, Norman said. He kept it in a glass cage with another snake he had taken care of for nine years. He had several other reptiles in other cages, and people often went back to look at them, Norman said.
"It was kind of a novelty with him," the sheriff said.
http://www.nola.com/newsflash/louisiana/index.ssf?/base/news-13/1103749145242180.xml&storylist=louisiana
