Best way I've found yet to deal with snake problems!!

[Triple Willow]

I will be using this in the spring. My daughter was bit by a copperhead. 17 viles of antivenom, two days in ICU and over $260, 000.00 bill to the insurance. I wont tell you our end of it. But lets just say it will take me ten years to pay it off easy! We had birds dying left and right until snake hunkered down for winter. The one that bit my daughter is dead. But I know we have more. I will be placing these all over my farm. Thank you so much for the post. You literally are saving a life.

Wow! I sure am glad your daughter come out of that alright. All these people who THINK that they can "live and let live" with venomous snakes need to talk to you! What area do you live in? Can you tell us more? Like how was your daughter bit? Where do you find the snakes, etc.?

 

[Triple Willow]

I would think the mothballs would be toxic I've never used them myself not even in storing things in boxes I have used cedar for that, I just don't like the smell of mothballs really,


I have a set of snake tongs that I use to grab the snakes once I get the trap open, with the copperheads I'm just extra careful opening the trap, I suppose that shooting the snake in the trap would be okay might damage the wire some though, there have been several good suggestions about how to get them out, shooting, freezing, drowning ect.. I would think freezing would be the most humane if you weren't going to relocate them. For the poisonous snakes I freeze them after I take them out of the trap I don't relocate them, I'm not making my problem someone else's problem.


I have caught several more snakes since I first posted I'm at 9 for copperheads 3 pigmy rattlers a couple more rat snakes one king snake and a garter snake LOL not sure what it was doing hanging out around the chickens nothing there for it to eat. I have lost count on the total snakes somewhere around 15 so far the trap does seem to do it's job well,

Elwood I don't know if you are still out there but you mention putting venomous snakes in the freezer to kill them. I don't know if it works for you or not but a word of caution - I had some pet snakes that I was hibernating in an outdoor building. Out of the blue (or I wasn't paying attention) we had a cold night where it got down to around 20'F. When I went to check on my snakes I would have swore they were DEAD. Two were limp as a noodle, no life in them whatsoever. One was curled up in its water bowl and when I took it out it had ICE on it. I felt like crap for letting that happen. I started to just toss them out on the ground but for some odd reason I decided to carry them back to the house. Well very shortly after I got them back in the house one of them started to move! I'll have you know that all three of them snapped out of it and had no damage whatsoever. In fact, that was years ago and two of them are stilll living. I know most freezers are not 20'F or less. I bet those snakes you are putting in your freezer are not really dead, just a little froze up for the moment. Be careful!

 

[chickengeorgeto]

It will never end well when humans try to make friends with snakes. This tune is just the tip of the (shakes) "tale."

 

[Farm Mommy]

Wow! I sure am glad your daughter come out of that alright. All these people who THINK that they can "live and let live" with venomous snakes need to talk to you! What area do you live in? Can you tell us more? Like how was your daughter bit? Where do you find the snakes, etc.?

She was bit on the toe. Only one fang got her. She stepped on it by accident. We live in southern Maryland. She was walking into the hay room and it was dark. We thankfully taught our girls about poisonous snakes and what yo do if your ever bit. They say copperheads are not that venomous. Ya couldn't convince me of that. Not after this. She is a healthy 17 year-old. ..she did not have an allergic reaction. Yet it took a lot of anti-venom to stop the progression. I sadly knew more on how to treat it then the hospital did. It wasn't until she got yo the icu at children's in dc did I feel like anyone knew what they were doing. And I thought I was being a bit over prepared when I took the time to learn all of this. We camped in snake area. Never thought it would happen at home.

 

[sarahsunshine]

Elwood I don't know if you are still out there but you mention putting venomous snakes in the freezer to kill them. I don't know if it works for you or not but a word of caution - I had some pet snakes that I was hibernating in an outdoor building. Out of the blue (or I wasn't paying attention) we had a cold night where it got down to around 20'F. When I went to check on my snakes I would have swore they were DEAD. Two were limp as a noodle, no life in them whatsoever. One was curled up in its water bowl and when I took it out it had ICE on it. I felt like crap for letting that happen. I started to just toss them out on the ground but for some odd reason I decided to carry them back to the house. Well very shortly after I got them back in the house one of them started to move! I'll have you know that all three of them snapped out of it and had no damage whatsoever. In fact, that was years ago and two of them are stilll living. I know most freezers are not 20'F or less. I bet those snakes you are putting in your freezer are not really dead, just a little froze up for the moment. Be careful!

Interesting TW - I work at Fish and Wildlife, and when we get poisonous snakes (generally illegal pets), the deep freezer is the way to deal with them. It is the accepted "humane" way of dispatching them. Perhaps the reason that your snakes survived is because it was 20F outside, but slightly cooler in the building.Then, the inner body temperature would be even warmer than the outside skin (where the ice was). Also, a slow freeze is much "friendlier" than a quick freeze.

I think the deep freeze should work great, but definitely be careful and make sure that they are in there for a good long time (weeks).


I also worked in a reptile lab for years, and really, the freezer is the way to go. We frequently joked about "snake" barbecue, while digging for our lunch in the fridge/freezer among samples!

 

[Triple Willow]

Interesting TW - I work at Fish and Wildlife, and when we get poisonous snakes (generally illegal pets), the deep freezer is the way to deal with them. It is the accepted "humane" way of dispatching them. Perhaps the reason that your snakes survived is because it was 20F outside, but slightly cooler in the building.Then, the inner body temperature would be even warmer than the outside skin (where the ice was). Also, a slow freeze is much "friendlier" than a quick freeze.


I think the deep freeze should work great, but definitely be careful and make sure that they are in there for a good long time (weeks).


I also worked in a reptile lab for years, and really, the freezer is the way to go. We frequently joked about "snake" barbecue, while digging for our lunch in the fridge/freezer among samples!

Hi Sara. It was definitely interesting! If somebody had told me that I don't see me believing it. LOL I don't know if the length of time "frozen" makes the difference or what...? All I know is that those things can take a lot and survive when it comes to freezing! It has been a few years ago when that happened but I am pretty sure I was using one of those indoor/outdoor thermometers with the remote outdoor part where they were. It was around 20 degrees and had probably been lower that night. I felt awful- so glad they survived.

 

[bcfd2004]

Originally Posted by yinepu 

Originally Posted by the-bird-man 
all i can say is i am sure happy i do not have to deal with snakes where i live! i know they do a lot of good in all but i prefer not to live close to them lol

I have 5 as pets in the house...  lol

2 dumerils boas, a ball python and 2 corn snakes.

Funny. I live with around a hundred snakes right inside the home. /img/smilies/wink.png

Sorry, But You Need Help...

 

[bcfd2004]

Originally Posted by wayne206 
Great Ideas!!! Also, Another very good way to tell the difference between poisonous and non-poisonous is to look at the tail... Non-poisonous has tail ending in point, like a sharpened pencil...Poisonous ones have a blunt end like your small finger...But the head is a giveaway!!  Thanks All

Double check me on this, cause I'm too tired right now to look it up, but I think that poisonous snakes always have "slotted" pupils and non-poisonous snakes have "round" pupils.

Also, if you look on their underside behind their vent you will see that one has a single row of scales and the other has double row of scales.

These are not always the best way to tell when they are alive but if you wonder after the fact it is good to know or if one is caught but not yet disposed of it can help.

Im Not Planning On Getting Close Enough To Spot These Little Differences... If It Looks Like A Snake Its Dead.

 

[chisNchickens]

Sorry, But You Need Help...

Sorry, but you don't know what you are talking about. My husband raises ball python morphs. These are expensive snakes bred for beautiful color and markings. I feel sorry for (or try to) people so narrow minded such as yourself. Killing animals/reptiles for no reason...YOU need help.

 

[jetdog]

Im Not Planning On Getting Close Enough To Spot These Little Differences... If It Looks Like A Snake Its Dead.

x2 off with your head.