snake story

[Midsouth]

I can remember my grandfather telling us about a copper head falling out of a tree he was bushogging under and landing across his legs. He left the tractor to the snake and then had to chase it down before it ran into the pond.

 

[scott_vt]

Or leaves you with only a couple of exits when one inadvertantly gets in. Nice warm cab, small hole for electric wires... Don't ever think the cab is keeping you safe ;-)

Good Evenin woodlandfarms,
Thats it lets put the fear of God into those cab tractor people !

 

[patrick_g]

I am in the mind set of "the only good snake is a dead snake" - BUT if i could get them to wear a bell so I knew where they were at all times (ie so they dont scare me) I would change my mind..
brian

Hey, they have snakes with an audio alert system. Not a bell but serves the same purpose. You get close and the snake sets off the audio alarm. There are even snakes that try to imitate the alarm equipped snakes who wiggle their tale and if they are in dry leaves or litter it sounds sort of like the snake with the alarm system. We had one on the back porch the other day. I irritated it till it went into its display to show our company and then tossed it off into the back yard.

I do not purposely hunt for snakes of any type poisonous or not. We supposedly have copperhead, cotton mouth, and rattlers in our area but in 8 years roaming over our 160 acres I have only seen two candidates which may have been poisonous but didn't get close enough for a positive ID. The "maybe cottonmouth" made the mistake of swimming across a pond toward my wife while I was target practicing with my pistol and subsequent to our "confrontation" permanently submerged. The "maybe copperhead" got away in brush before I could ID it or shoot it.

When doing fence repairs or whatever in "snakey" areas I swap out the hollow points in my .45 ACP "baby Glock" for a magazine filled with snake shot rounds for just in case but in years haven't used it for snakes as I can usually get a positive ID that they are non poisonous. If the ID is indeterminate due to visibility or the snake should get aggressive I will not hesitate to blast it (just haven't had to yet.) I don't look for opportunities but will not hesitate to dispatch an unknown or poisonous snake within shot shell range of me (pretty close) but I will not go out of my way to get in a shot. Just my rules...

My natural reaction to a 6-7 ft snake is the same as his, back off. Of course back in the olden days when I could do the California riding and hiking trail with a 6 gun on my hip, I dispatched a few rattlers within striking distance of the trail.

Pat

Pat

 

[Earl Ohl]

Or leaves you with only a couple of exits when one inadvertantly gets in. Nice warm cab, small hole for electric wires... Don't ever think the cab is keeping you safe ;-)

Obviously you don't check your equipment out before using it. I do. Also we have 5 or 6 cats that hang around that we feed. They keep the critters under control.

 

[herd]

For most of my life, until a few years back, I too was in the mindset and practice that the only good snake is a dead snake. But, as I matured (got old), I realized that snakes are here for a purpose, so now I only kill poisonous snakes and only if it is a situation where I have to. I live on 50 acres, lots of pines, so it's copperhead haven. See them a lot, pick a month, even in january.

I only kill one if it's close to the house or shop, otherwise, I give them every chance to get away. Most snakes will, o/t cottonmouths, who are terrkitorial.

BTW, a lot of people don't know this, but a bite by a non-poisonous snake should not be taken lightly; because of their diet, their mouth is flush with bad bacteria that can cause bad problems. And, if you let them bite on you long enough, the bite can be just as deadly as one of our poisonous ones.


Snakes in general do far more good than harm. I don't like them but if they don't sneak up on me, I'll give them the road.

 

[patrick_g]

For most of my life, until a few years back, I too was in the mindset and practice that the only good snake is a dead snake. But, as I matured (got old), I realized that snakes are here for a purpose, so now I only kill poisonous snakes and only if it is a situation where I have to. I live on 50 acres, lots of pines, so it's copperhead haven. See them a lot, pick a month, even in january.

I only kill one if it's close to the house or shop, otherwise, I give them every chance to get away. Most snakes will, o/t cottonmouths, who are terrkitorial.

BTW, a lot of people don't know this, but a bite by a non-poisonous snake should not be taken lightly; because of their diet, their mouth is flush with bad bacteria that can cause bad problems. And, if you let them bite on you long enough, the bite can be just as deadly as one of our poisonous ones.

Snakes in general do far more good than harm. I don't like them but if they don't sneak up on me, I'll give them the road.

Right on, Herd... As my paternal aunt used to say (she taught biology for nearly 40 years and often kept snakes in the classroom and at home.) snakes don't brush their teeth and can give you a nasty infection. OK maybe not like the Komodo Dragon lizard but still a bad thing.

Pat

 

[ampsucker]

saw first one of the season today in the orchard. wasn't one of the 4 poisonous in north america (water moccasin, rattler, coral or copperhead). let it be. they are beneficial in many ways.

i do shoot copperheads if they are close to the house. keep a .22 and .38 loaded with buckshot as a good lawn mower gun. if close to the shop, they get the .410 or 20 gauge.

i've been known to catch copperheads in a 5 gallon bucket w/ lid and haul them off. they are beautiful snakes. if you ever see one, you'll know what it is right away. the ones i've seen have been very non-agressive actually going into the bucket quite easily and not striking or anything. but, if i don't have time or am not feeling brave and they are hanging out someplace where one of the family or pets might chance across them, then they get the buckshot treatment.

amp

 

[spruce Deere]

Snakes..... why does it always half to be snakes....... Harrison Ford.

 

[aggiehortguy91]

Several years ago, we were taking a dog through an obedience class. We met in a parking lot at night. A week or two after the final class, I went in to the office of the place teaching the class and the obedience teacher said "look what we found in one of the palm trees by where we were holding class." She held up a VERY large snake skin, said where it was found, and pointed out that it was 12' long (YES! 12', not 12") and didn't have the head on it so the snake was definately longer. My guess is that it was a python that someone let go.

We used to have a pair of black racers in our yard that were smart enough to learn how far into the brush the dog could chase them. They would get in the yard and wave their heads in the air to get his attention. When he started running at them, they would make a break for the brush then stop just out of reach and wave their heads at him some more!

We have plenty of poisions snakes, too. Lost a dog to a rattle snake. The fang marks were about 1.5" apart. Had one dog that killed a coral snake and got sick from eating the head. Stepped over a coral snake on my front porch trying to get my kids loaded up to go to preschool. I pulled a copperhead out raking leaves out from under the bushes. I don't usually kill any snakes, poisionos or not because they all eat a fair amount of undesirables around the place.

 

[NuBota]

Few weeks ago, went into the shed and fired up the BX - standing next to the tractor - 5' black snake comes sauntering off the mower deck, across my boot and then casually out the door - not as bad as dropping from the sky, but got the blood pumping. The week before I had a field mouse in there with some babies - not anymore......

As others have said, I have changed my philosophy about the non-poisonous snakes - have a pair of blacks that winter under the sidewalk at my front porch for the last three years. They are both about 5' now - I just leave 'em. In spring, they come out in the flower bed to sun - then move out for the summer. Have another one that took up in the back of the house by the garage under a retaining wall. Wife and kids are all aware, so we just leave them be. Have seen others (or same ones) in the yard/woods along with garter and ring neck.
Most of my neighbors have found copperheads on their property, but I haven't in 7 years - I'm gonna assume all the blacks keep 'em at bay - that's my story anyway.....