First Rattler of the Season

[dlh]

So, a couple of hours ago I opened my garage door leading to my cement driveway to carry some trash out.
I always look when I do that--and sure enough---there was a 4 foot diamond-back rattler stretched out on the driveway about six feet away ( a bad shot).
I grabbed my .410 Taurus long gun/shotgun with revolver action loaded with no. 8 two and a half inch rounds out of the gun safe.
What do I do now? I threw a broom and a walking stick at the snake to try and get it to move into the grass so I could get a good shot. No luck, instead it crawled under my Honda and coiled up (bad shot). Now what do I do? I had read you can move a snake with a water hose and pressure nozzle so I was lucky that the hose and nozzle were nearby and directed some hi-stream water it. That moved it under the Expedition (bad shot). I kept squirting it and it finally moved into the grass (good shot!).
I then dispatched it with the .410.
This had a happy ending but if I had not known the snake was there and it was coiled under my Honda it could have easily bitten me before I saw it as I was getting into the car.
Folks, if you live in the country or even a wooded subdivision watch where you step and look under your cars!

[striker55]

That would freak me out!

[jason812]

4ft is no joke. I got mine a week ago with the tractor returning from my dad's. Got its head with one of the ribs on the front tire on a paved road. Probably about 3ft long or so. Of course I had to get my obligatory trophy.

[crazy2medic]

No Step On Snek!

[clarionite]

My Fiance found a rat snake in the back yard this morning. It shook it's tail mimicking a rattler. Scared the crap out of her.

[03Lightningrocks]

Folks, if you live in the country or even a wooded subdivision watch where you step and look under your cars!

Not just in the country. They have had kids bitten by snakes here in Plano. Folks living along creeks or green belts don't think about it but we have many reports of copper heads and water moccasins hiding under leaves and bushes. I don't think I have heard or read of any rattlers in Plano. Thank goodness.

[03Lightningrocks]

My Fiance found a rat snake in the back yard this morning. It shook it's tail mimicking a rattler. Scared the crap out of her.

I bet a lot of rat snakes have been dispatched by home owners who just did not know any better.

[crazy2medic]

Couple of years ago as I got home from work I noticed the familiar pattern of a copperhead in the leaves on my driveway, So I found me a stick I could beat it to death with and as I moved the leaves to find the head, noted the snake was already dead, it had marks on the back of it's head, and a bite mark right behind the head, I figured out that the feral cat that had a ltter of kittens under my house had dealt the snake a fatal bite, guess she wasn't having any snake anywhere near her kittens! I'm not really a cat fan but I decided she could stay!

[03Lightningrocks]

[clarionite]

My Fiance found a rat snake in the back yard this morning. It shook it's tail mimicking a rattler. Scared the crap out of her.

I bet a lot of rat snakes have been dispatched by home owners who just did not know any better.

A brown snake almost was dispatched in my back yard last week due to it's very similar appearance to a juvenile copper head.

I leave non venomous snakes alone, or at at most help them relocate from my yard when I find them. but I dispatch venomous snakes due to having dogs and a young person who plays in my back yard.

[RPBrown]

He was relocated to the woods, In 3 pieces

[Ed4032]

When I first started to read this I thought you found my ex wife. Still not sure.

[dlh]

I snapped its rattles off yesterday and took a pic. I checked this morning and the raccoons had hauled its carcass off. Darn raccoons are good for something! Counted 11 rattles and a button.

[Odiferous]

I'm used to having to occasionally help a brown or garter out of the pool, but a couple days ago I glimpsed something crawling onto the coping with a vaguely copperhead pattern--and I spotted it from across the house.

Turned out to be about 4' long, and this big boy didn't even have to slow down to lift out of the pool. Most likely a rat snake, but he ran as soon as he noticed me--probably a good habit in suburbia.

[jason812]

Father in law called an hour ago to help him dig a snake out of a wood pile in his barn. This was an aggressive little guy and about 2.5 Crocs long. Turns out that's the second snake he killed today. First one was between the duals of his rv. It was 3 Crocs long but didn't have as nice jewelry as the shorter one. That's 3 in his yard so far this year.

Memorial Day weekend I missed a 5ft one on the tractor. It almost covered my driveway as it crawled across. I just couldn't get to it in time and went looking in the brush after the sneaky creature and still couldn't find it.