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| Australian spider bite boy saved by massive anti-venom dose | Australian spider bite boy saved by massive anti-venom dose |
| (about 5 hours later) | |
| A 10-year-old Australian boy has survived being bitten by one of the world's most venomous spiders after being treated with 12 vials of anti-venom, reports say. | |
| It is thought to be one of the largest doses of anti-venom ever administered in Australia. | It is thought to be one of the largest doses of anti-venom ever administered in Australia. |
| Matthew Mitchell was bitten on his finger by a funnel-web spider while helping his father clear out a shed. | Matthew Mitchell was bitten on his finger by a funnel-web spider while helping his father clear out a shed. |
| He suffered multiple seizures, dilated eyes and began frothing at the mouth. | He suffered multiple seizures, dilated eyes and began frothing at the mouth. |
| "It sort of clawed onto me and all the legs and everything crawled around my finger and I couldn't get it off," he told Friday's Australian Daily Telegraph. | "It sort of clawed onto me and all the legs and everything crawled around my finger and I couldn't get it off," he told Friday's Australian Daily Telegraph. |
| Matthew's family used his shirt as a tourniquet to curtail the spread of the venom as he was rushed to hospital. | Matthew's family used his shirt as a tourniquet to curtail the spread of the venom as he was rushed to hospital. |
| The dose of anti-venom is believed to be three larger more than any other survivor in living memory, the Telegraph said. | The dose of anti-venom is believed to be three larger more than any other survivor in living memory, the Telegraph said. |
| The spider has been captured and taken to the Australian Reptile Park near Sydney, where it is now being used in a venom-milking programme. | The spider has been captured and taken to the Australian Reptile Park near Sydney, where it is now being used in a venom-milking programme. |
| The park's general manager Tim Faulkner said Matthew was "as lucky as they get". | The park's general manager Tim Faulkner said Matthew was "as lucky as they get". |
| February and March are the peak breeding season for many funnel-web species with males - five times more venous than their female counterparts - being particularly aggressive. | February and March are the peak breeding season for many funnel-web species with males - five times more venous than their female counterparts - being particularly aggressive. |
| Find out more about spiders’ impressive skills - from BBC iWonder | Find out more about spiders’ impressive skills - from BBC iWonder |
| The small and deadly funnel-web spider | The small and deadly funnel-web spider |
| Sources: Australian Museum, US National Library of Medicine | Sources: Australian Museum, US National Library of Medicine |