Reptile zoo founder hospitalized by snakebite

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — The founder of the Kentucky Reptile Zoo was hospitalized after being bitten by a rattlesnake while extracting venom from the reptile.

The Lexington Herald-Leader (http://bit.ly/1BKqtUu) reports that Jim Harrison, director of the Powell County facility, was bitten Friday when the snake broke a restraining tube and bit his left wrist. Zoo curator Kristen Wiley says the snakebite caused the 56-year-old Harrison to have difficulty breathing.

Wiley says Harrison was taken to Clark Regional Medical Center, where he got a dose of the anti-venom serum the zoo keeps on hand for such instances. Harrison was transferred to University of Kentucky Hospital.

Wiley says Harrison is expected to make a full recovery.

Wiley says the nonprofit zoo extracts venom and sells it for cancer research as a way to support the facility.

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Information from: Lexington Herald-Leader, http://www.kentucky.com

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