Help! SNAKES!! Anybody have any magic fix for a snake population explosion??!

[mamahen1980]

Loving the geese, hows the snake patrol going tophats?

 

[TopHatsNSpats]

Sorry guys, was out of pocket for a bit, but the netting is great! Bonus: the geese will get the snakes that get in the netting LOL they treat it like a private snack stand. So far only lost one other baby, one of the Brahmas stuck its head under the fence and got caught, but the rest are doing great. So far so good! the deer netting is a win. Also, no more in the house. Hoping it stays that way!

 

[LoneOak]

I had one of those big black rat snakes eat a wooden nest egg once. It couldn't crush the wooden egg and because of that it couldn't escape threw the hole it used to come in the coop. I found it the next morning curled up in the nest box like it belonged there. There were hens laying in the boxes on either side. I picked the snake up with my pitch fork -can't stand the way they feel- and threw him out in the yard. He was already in distress and didn't move much at all. When he died a couple days later I picked him up -with the same pitch fork- and tossed him in the thicket of weeds behind the coop. About a month later I went looking for him in the weeds and found him all dried out and nearly decomposed, I retrieved my wooden egg, cleaned it up and have been using it again ever since.

 

[Hengland]

My husband and I live in Southeastern Oklahoma, and our year of the snakes was last year. We found and got rid of six breeding pairs of chicken snakes last year. I believe we were lucky enough to get them before they were able to breed. I have found out a lot about these critters since.

1. They produce a musk, so snake-away products and moth balls won't help.
2. They can be active in the day, but mainly at dawn, dusk, and night. Mine seemed to like about 300 AM.
3. Light startles them at night and they tend to freeze in place, but don't take the light off of them or they will disappear in no time.
4. Traps work on them. (See below)
5. They tend to travel in breeding pairs. They lay a musk trail behind them so mates are able to follow. If you dispose of one. Drag it somewhere handy and then dispose of what ever slithers up beside it.
6. They can and will lay dozens of eggs on your place if they like it, and you will have to deal with their offspring the following years.
7. If you see them at a certain time, they will be back the same time next day or at least the next.

Trap number one: Attach a strong string to a small perch hook and insert into an egg. make sure to seal off the hole with piece of tape. This works about 50% of the time. I set six of these last year and caught three snakes. Be sure to tie the string off to a sturdy attachment of some kind.

Trap number 2: Build a wooden box. No matter what size. Make sure there is a hole on both ends and a divider in the middle with a hole. Put one egg in each compartment. you have to check this one often and it only works about a quarter of the time. Here are the dimensions I used. 10"x10"x16" Outside and split it inside into 8" halves.

The geese seem to be doing you a pretty good job. If you can stand the sound of a guinea. 8 to 10 of them will alert you to anything that is off in the area.

Just wondering why you are having so many snakes. Have you had an explosion of mice or other pray in your area, or a lack of predators? Chicken hawks and so on?

 

[Hengland]

I'm going to have to look into this netting as well. Glad it is working so well.

 

[TopHatsNSpats]

For those who are curious: We do not know what started the Snake Migration last year but it does appear to have been a one time thing. We asked around and others in the area were having the same issues. This year, we have seen VERY few snakes, and I have to say that the geese are marvelous. Will not be without them ever again. The deer netting is also a win. Thanks to all for the many wonderful suggestions!