Glendale Boy, 3, Hospitalized After Being Bitten by Rattlesnake

A 3-year-old Glendale boy who was bitten by a rattlesnake during the toddler’s back-yard birthday party was in fair condition at Childrens Hospital in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

Matthew Peters was bitten about 10:30 p.m. Tuesday by a “very young rattlesnake,” said Glendale Fire Marshal Dave Starr, adding that the youngster will probably be hospitalized a few more days.

Starr said young vipers, usually 8 to 10 inches long, can be more dangerous than adult rattlesnakes because they don’t have rattles.

“They don’t give you the warnings the older snakes do,” Starr said. Rattlesnake encounters are frequent in the Southland’s foothills, Starr said. “It probably came into the yard just because it was cooler there,” he said.