Caught a rattler

[MykeMc]

Went out to check on the chicks. My wife walked about before me and as I got to the barn I saw something moving under my truck, and had seen a cottontail under there earlier and thought it odd that the baby bunny didn't take off when my wife walked by. I stopped to close the barn (really a metal pole building) door and heard the rattle. Took me a few seconds to figure out what it was, it was only about 2 feet long and sounded more like a gas leak than a rattler, I stepped back and looked under the truck and he was coiled up with his head about 8 inches off the ground looking pretty upset. He was even more upset when he got hit in the head with a shovel. Now he is in a bowl of water getting ready to be deep fried tomorrow. Only 5 days left of rattlesnake hunting season here in Colorado.

 

[erinszoo]

I was going to ask if you ate him for supper ...

but I see you're planning on it. At least it wasn't too big. My dad tells about catching one when he was a teen (back in the 50's) that was as big around as his thigh and about 13 feet long. I can't imagine how terrifying that would have been. We used to have our screen doors hung so they swung in instead of out so that we could sweep the rattlers off the concrete steps each morning in the summer out in western Oklahoma.

 

[chickortreat]

Went out to check on the chicks. My wife walked about before me and as I got to the barn I saw something moving under my truck, and had seen a cottontail under there earlier and thought it odd that the baby bunny didn't take off when my wife walked by. I stopped to close the barn (really a metal pole building) door and heard the rattle. Took me a few seconds to figure out what it was, it was only about 2 feet long and sounded more like a gas leak than a rattler, I stepped back and looked under the truck and he was coiled up with his head about 8 inches off the ground looking pretty upset. He was even more upset when he got hit in the head with a shovel. Now he is in a bowl of water getting ready to be deep fried tomorrow. Only 5 days left of rattlesnake hunting season here in Colorado.

So what if it weren't rattlesnake season? You'd have to let him go? How is it looked on if you kill one in your yard "out of season"?

 

[MykeMc]

Chickortreat,
If it was out of season, I would have done the same thing. The only difference is I wouldn't have "hunted" rattlesnake, but disposed of a threat to my animals. Here in Colorado farmers can shoot deer out of season if the deer are eating their crops. I wouldn't want to push the limits shooting a deer or antelope out of season, but I doubt DOW would question or even show up at my house for killing a rattlesnake.

erinszoo,
I went hog hunting in Texas and a local beer store had the skin for a rattler about the size your dad caught, and it wasn't the record rattler in Texas. I wish mine was a little bigger, I have quite a few people wanting to try the meat, so it's going to be just a small piece for everybody.