Effing Rattlesnakes

[craigster59]

Looks like gopher snake. as good to have around for mice as a cat. I can understand the "shoot first and ask questions later", but the rattler head is "shovel" shaped and looks like no rattle on that one although I wouldn't wait for the hind end to exit the bed before taking action. Makes a nice hat band though.

[Super_Dave_D]

[QUOTE=Rick Lee;4197716] I need to build a snake stick anyway, so I don't have to do what Hugh did. QUOTE]

I keep meaning to do that too but always remember, as I'm holding a shovel, preparing for the epic battle.

Luckily with 2 cats constantly on the prowl, I haven’t had any in the house.

[elwood-914]

Originally Posted by daepp

Looks like a gopher snake to me. That said, while non venomous, they are mean as hell!

They are only mean when cornered, or fear for their life.
That is not a rattle snake, but I don't want it in my house either.
We have rattlers, bull, King and racers here. Don't even see the rattlers too often but they are out there.

[MRM]

Bull snakes actually kill rattle snakes. Kind of counterproductive to kill them. If you aren't comfortable scooping them up and releasing them into the wild (a long ways away) call a local university, pet store or pest control outfit. They'll be happy to help you out.

Rattlesnakes and all venomous snakes in the US are easy to identify by the oversized triangular shaped head. I mean serious arrowhead shaped. If the head doesn't look like a big fat arrowhead, then it's almost certainly not poisonous. Try not to get all Freudian and scared when you see a snake. It's just another animal. Think it out. There's no reason the snake has to die.

Normy - a Holy Grail part for the 928 only costs about $400? Seems like a lot of work for that particular grail.

[Rick Lee]

Whether you like snakes or fear them, everyone in the U.S. should learn to identify pit vipers. It's so easy and it could save your life someday. AFAIK, the Coral snake is the only venomous snake in the U.S., which is not a pit viper and they can easily be mistaken for King snakes (Red and black, poison lack. Red and yellow, poison fellow.) You can get tagged by a Coral snake, which supposedly is not very painful, think it's a King snake, not worry about it and then drop dead because you didn't know you needed a med-evac. to a hospital right away. I've been tagged by a King snake before, but it was a pet and I knew exactly what it was. Unfortunately, a lot of snakes not indigenous to this continent are getting released in areas like FL now by folks who thought they'd make cool pets and then couldn't handle them once they got big. But I've not heard of any exotic, non-indigenous, venomous snakes being found in wild in this country.

I doubt a cat will keep snakes away. Any snake that feels hungry or threatened would make very short work of a house cat. There's a photo floating around out there of an Anaconda swallowing a Cheetah. And wild cats are far more alert in the wild than house cats are around the house.

[RWebb]

Originally Posted by slodave

Bull snake aka gopher snake is harmless and also a benefit. Why would you kill it?

Exactly. They also eat rattlers, so now the chance of finding a real rattler in house is increased.

[DARISC]

Originally Posted by Rick Lee

I doubt a cat will keep snakes away.

I've had a lifelong fear of Anacondas, so I've always kept a cat or two - so far so good.

[Hugh R]

I wouldn't purposely kill a non-venomous snake. Like I said, it was slithering under my bed. I didn't have a chance to interview him. Also, I hate snakes, and after I killed it, I didn't look real close at it. I just dumped it. I've killed 9 real rattlers in my yard in the last decade.

[9dreizig]

Originally Posted by Hugh R

I wouldn't purposely kill a non-venomous snake. Like I said, it was slithering under my bed. I didn't have a chance to interview him. Also, I hate snakes, and after I killed it, I didn't look real close at it. I just dumped it. I've killed 9 real rattlers in my yard in the last decade.

Hugh I think you may have anger issues, we are all God's creatures and why can't we all just get along ??
Did you ever think about keeping a sharpened garden hoe around ? Easier to cut off their heads with.... That would creep me out having that thing in the house!!

[trekkor]

He said 'anaconda'...Heh, heh.




KT

[Heel n Toe]

Originally Posted by 9dreizig

Hugh I think you may have anger issues

I don't think he has anger issues, but he does have some very inventive, resourceful gopher snakes in his area, because I've never known one that could turn a doorknob.

Dude... it's time to move... next, you'll find one in your bed at night, or hissing at your butt as you sit on the terlit.

[Rick Lee]

My old retic. python got out one night and coiled around my leg while I was sleeping. It was pretty cold in the house and they have mostly thermal vision. To him I was a huge lump of warmth surrounded by cold. I don't think he was happy when I peeled him off and put him back in his cage. And retic. pythons are tempermental even when you don't irritate them.

[Rikao4]

Hugh I think you did the right thing..
and agree with Rick as well..learn whats out there..
but if it's in the bedroom,dark and slithering..it's toast.
Are you a burglar or are you lost..
in my house I make the rules...bang!

last fall,
wife goes to get some firewood, screams ,I run out, baby-rattler perched almost eye level to her, drop it I said.. I want to stomp it..'don't kill it' and while discussing it's fate ..
it slithered of into neighbors yard.
women..

Rika

[Tobra]

Rick, you misunderstand, cat eats varmints, snake has no grub, looks elsewhere for dinner.

Copperhead does not have big triangular shaped head. My wife could tell you how nasty they are, as she was bitten by one. They are not indigenous to Cali though. Killed one in my house, several in neighbor's house in Tejas

[DARISC]

Originally Posted by Tobra

Copperhead does not have big triangular shaped head.

Oh, really?

[onewhippedpuppy]

Snake in house = dead snake. Last time I checked, they're not exactly endangered.

[vash]

unless, it was obviously a harmless snake, i would have done the same thing. imagine trying to sleep if you lose that thing in the house somewhere, while looking it up in some reptile website. no thanks.

i heard that rattle snakes are not rattling anymore. some dont even have the rattles. evolution or something.

[billwagnon]

Originally Posted by dtw

Ran across a brown recluse spider in the house when I was a kid. Took about 10 years off my life. Rattlesnakes? Oh HELL no...

This summer I had 30 or 40 brown recluses in the house I rent. Whoever cut the wall for the aircon lines left a 1" gap all the way around - spider highway from the outside. They were everywhere! Basement, kitchen, upstairs, bedroom.

I was away for a couple nights and came in to the house in July - it was 82 degrees inside and it was recluse party time!

They're all gone now. I bugbombed and then a week or two later, the exterminator came in to finish them off.

[GothingNC]

Found this in my garage last year
1st called the kids for a camera then picked him and let im loose in the back yard.

Next day cops were checking out the neighbors garage, hmmmm

I would have shut the door if it was a rattle snake.

[Hugh R]

It got in because my 79 y/o mother in law, who lives with us can't seem to get her act together to keep the sliding door in her room close for her rat dog. I think I'm going to get one of those doggie doors for the sliding door.