This unfortunate incident occurred in Massachusetts. Kristine took her daughter to the doctor when the school called and told her daughter had a fever. The pediatrician recommended she go to the ER.
When Kristine saw the mark on her daughter’s leg, she didn’t panic, because she thought it was just a bruise. Her 5-year-old daughter never said a word about it, but her mother soon found out her daughter was in danger when the bruise on her leg turned black. Soon realized that her life was in danger.
Kristine said:
“They knew it was a spider bite. They didn’t know what spider bite, so they gave her some antibiotics. She never felt it bite her. It could have been in her jeans in the location where it bit her, we just don’t know.”
When the color changed, and her symptoms didn’t subside, Kristine took her daughter to the hospital. There she found out Kailyn had been bitten by a black widow spider. The dangerous venom in the black widow spider bite turned the mark black and killed the flesh surrounding the bite.
A black widow spider bite can cause seizures, and in severe cases, death. Kailyn’s father, Josh, was surprised that this happened to his daughter, particularly because of where they live. It’s not something you would expect, especially in Massachusetts. Kristine was assured the spider was not crawling around inside their house.
Kristine also said:
“The doctor said it definitely was outside, they don’t chase people. It probably was bothered. We’ve been doing a lot of yard work, it probably upset one of them and she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. If you think it’s something, just keep looking for an answer. I had a feeling it was pretty bad, and I just kept pushing to have it checked out. We are taking extra precautions now to be safe, and we are spraying the inside and outside of our home to keep the spiders away.”
Kailyn is reportedly healing nicely and handling being the victim of the rare bite well:
“It doesn’t seem to bother her. She looks at it, she doesn’t think it’s gross, so I try not to make a big deal out of it, to make her nervous or anything.”
Last, but not least important – it is recommended that anyone who has been bitten, or suspects they have been bitten, by a black widow spider to quickly seek medical help.