Boy, 6, Hospitalized After Copperhead Snake Bites Him Outside His Home

A 6-year-old boy was hospitalized for two days after being bitten by a venomous snake while playing outside his home in Gwinnett County, Georgia.

Zander Childers was bitten on his left forearm by a copperhead snake when he tripped and fell during a game of basketball, according to WSBTV .

Upon hearing distressed calls, Childers' mother, Andrea, rushed to the scene and immediately summoned an ambulance.

Childers said that her initial thought was to take her son to the emergency room, but quickly realized that the better course of action was to call for an ambulance.

"We were initially going to get shoes and head to the emergency room and I said, 'No, we need to call for an ambulance.' So we called 911 and they walked us through laying flat, [putting] the arm below the heart," Childers told WSBTV.

"It is a short window of time where the anti-venom can reverse the effects so it doesn't cause long-term damage."

Copperheads are heavy-bodied and can exceed 40 inches in length, according to the University of Georgia's Savannah River Ecology Laboratory.

They're covered from head to tail in patterns of various shades of brown, which means they are often well camouflaged.

According to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, copperheads further evade detection by remaining motionless for periods of time.

People are most likely to be bitten "when they unknowingly step on or near a copperhead," according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

While a bite from a copperhead is rarely fatal, it can be extremely painful and cause serious health problems.

The CDC says that administering antivenom as soon as possible "helps limbs to recover faster and it lessens the chance that a limb will be disabled after copperhead snake envenomation."

Zander Childers was taken to Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Strong4Life, where he received two days of treatment in the pediatric intensive care unit before being discharged.

"Think cooler temps mean no more snakes? Think again. While playing basketball in his driveway, a loose ball riled up a copperhead near Zander's garage; it ultimately bit his forearm," the hospital wrote in a post on Twitter.

"Keep your guard up this fall and be mindful of snakes amid ivy, grass and fallen leaves."

Copperheads can be found throughout the eastern and central states of the U.S., and as far west as Texas.

Though they tend to favor forests and rocky areas, they can thrive in a wide variety of different habitats, including swamps and in suburban areas.