MACCLENNY, Fla. – A Macclenny boy recovering at Wolfson Children's Hospital after he was bitten by a water moccasin Wednesday was released from the hospital Saturday afternoon, his father told News4Jax.
As the sun was setting Wednesday, 12-year-old Nathaniel Jones was walking through his front yard when he was bitten by the venomous snake, his father, Jason Jones, said Thursday.
"I was on FaceTime with my wife and about 8 o'clock, he was walking through the yard and the snake bit him, so he ran in the house, and he was panicking that he was going to die. She kept trying to calm him down," Jason Jones said. "They called 911. They came and took him to a local Fraser hospital. Fraser (staff) determine to send him to Wolfson and he's been here ever since."
Jason Jones said he was working in South Florida at the time and traveled to the Jacksonville hospital as soon as he could after the water moccasin bit his son on the foot.
"Hopefully, he gets out fine," Jason Jones said. "From now on, he's going to wear shoes and watch out where he's walking through the yard."
Jason Jones said his son, who is in good spirits and smiling, received his third dose of antivenin at 6 p.m. Thursday. The father said he's hopeful the third dose will be successful so his son doesn't have to undergo surgery.
Jason Jones told News4Jax on Friday that his son's blood work has been good and that if it's still good at 2 p.m., Nathaniel can go home. He said the swelling will take some time to go down.
Not only has this been hard for Nathaniel, but also he and his wife, Jason Jones said.
"For me, it's just scary because I'm four hours away from her. She's nervous because it's her baby and she doesn't know what to do," Jason Jones said. "She can't help him -- she just has to sit there and watch him go through it and hopefully he gets out fine."
The family lives near a retention pond, so snakes are common. But Jason Jones said he never imagined his son would be bitten by one.
He hopes it serves as a warning to other parents to be extra cautious this summer.
"If you let your kid go out, make sure they watch where they go look for snakes, any objects, where they could get hurt," Jones said. "This could happen to anybody."
After Nathaniel was bitten, his father said, they were able to kill the snake and then gave it to paramedics when they arrived. At the hospital, doctors were able to determine it was a water moccasin, which helped them determine how to treat Nathaniel.
Jeff Altman, a local snake expert with American Trappers, said Nathaniel's family did the right thing by safely killing and keeping the snake for paramedics.
If a child is ever bitten by a snake, Altman offered this advice for parents:
- Don't apply a tourniquet. Instead, lightly cover it with a towel.
- Don't ice it because that could lead to frostbite.
- Don't let the person with bite walk because the venom could spread. Carry the person if possible.
- keep the person calm and get medical attention as soon as possible.
Jason Jones said Nathaniel is not allowed to leave the hospital bed until there's more improvement in his foot and the swelling goes down.