Zarza was a dog loved by her owners in South Africa. But after a cobra bite on the muzzle, the powerful Staffordshire terrier transported to a veterinary clinic could not be saved: impossible to find an antidote. The venom of the Mozambique spitting snake causes paralysis to death by respiratory arrest, but its effects can normally be countered by antivenom given by injection.
The problem, say South African veterinarians, is that antidote doses have not been found for months. Questioned by AFP, the health authorities say that the supply is normal. “Snakebite antivenom is available in the country,” says the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS), the government agency responsible for production.
But animal care facilities are not prioritized over hospitals and “right now if you’re a veterinarian you can’t get antivenom,” said Johan Marais, 65, director of the African Snakebite Institute in Pretoria.
Renowned herpetologist, who that day casually takes care of a poisonous black mamba, he says he receives a dozen calls a day from veterinarians and dog owners, all desperately looking for antidotes. “If your dog is badly bitten by a snake today, there’s a good chance he’ll die,” he said, wearing a white shirt and sunglasses.
“A major health risk”
The South African Veterinarians Association speaks of a “country-wide shortage”. And snakebite treatment experts called in April for help from the Minister of Health over what they describe as “a major health risk”.
South Africa is home to some 160 species of snakes, many of which are poisonous. But the country has only one antivenom manufacturer, which produces two antidotes. One against relatively rare boomslang bites, a long, slender green specimen, endemic to the region. The other against the bites of ten snakes including the Cape cobra, the puff adder and the green mamba.
Making antivenoms is complex, says Mike Perry, 67, who works at a specialized venom extraction lab, African Reptiles and Venom, based in suburban Johannesburg. This requires spitting the snakes over a glass container, to be able to recover their venom. The poisonous substance is then injected in small, non-lethal amounts into horses, which over time develop immunity.
Plasma from the equines is then collected and used to make the antidotes, Perry says, amidst some of the 900 snakes the lab keeps in small glass boxes. The cold chain is crucial throughout the process. And the supply problems are largely blamed on the electricity crisis that is eating away at the country and leading to long power cuts almost daily. The NHLS acknowledged in April that the lack of electricity had affected production and inventory. But the organization ensures that the situation is now restored and that, with a few exceptions, all orders are honored.
But in Pretoria, the veterinary clinic where Zarza could not be treated does not see any improvement. In desperation, 53-year-old veterinarian Dean de Kock recently picked up expired doses of antivenom from other facilities. But “we used the last bottle on Sunday night,” he says. In the past three months, he has received twenty-five dogs attacked by snakes. Only sixteen of them were able to receive an antidote.
“It’s rough,” he admits. Annoyed, he says he counts on the southern winter, when the snakes are less active, to limit the damage. “Hopefully before the next peak, in early spring and summer, we will have antivenoms again,” he adds.