Rattlesnake

[TexasTurkeyMama]

I approached a tubular steel gate to open it yesterday and received a soft buzzing from the other side of the wire. I stepped back and it stopped. I stepped forward and it resumed. Rattler! I called to DH who joined me in putting eyes on the visitor. It was in the poultry yard on the other side of the fencing. The wire is 2"x3" "hogwire", nothing preventing the snake from slithering away but it was alarmed by our approach all the same. We think the chickens milling around
was confusing it and then three humans showed up, compounding its dilemma. It actually unwound itself and came toward the center of the poultry yard, slowly,
instead of through the wire to the safety of the slash piles on the other side. That is when DH and 10 foot slat convinced the snake it would really be better to retreat to the slash piles after all. No pictures, sorry.

 

[pennyJo1960]

I am so sorry I would have run away screaming. Worst we have are gartner snakes
Chickens can eat them

 

[Compost King]

My Mouser cat died last year, now the mouse, rabbit, and rat population is flourishing. I fear we might get some venomous visitors come to feast here in the land of plenty. I fixed all my nesting boxes to where I have a clear view before I reach in to grab eggs. I hate even hearing about venomous snakes, one of the most frightening things to me. Someone may even lecture us on how few people die from snake bites... but how many people lose fingers from them? Yeah not everyone dies from cutting off their finger with a saw but I don't want to cut my finger off with the saw.

 

[Folly's place]

Thrilling times in Texas!
Here we only have very rare small rattlesnakes, which is fine with me. We've lived in Kansas, and Okinawa especially, home of many pit vipers, and sea snakes both. Learned to be very careful!
Mary

 

[Folly's place]

I backed carefully away from a buzzing rock pile while in Utah in 2018. Never saw the snake, and wasn't interested in hunting for a photo op either!
Mary

 

[Folly's place]

Do you loose chickens to those rattlers?
Mary

 

[Naser]

If you put ceramic eggs would it be something that give the snakes problems

 

[ColtHandorf]

Blech! I found a juvenile copperhead a few inches from the back porch the other evening. It was striking at me and the dogs so I definitely relocated it, permanently to the burn pile.

I remember when I was in the fifth grade I saw my first and only rattlesnake in the wild. I grew up on 113 acres in East Texas with oak and pine forests, creeks, marshes, a lake, and pastures; so a variety of habitats. My dad had opened the valve in the damn to drain the lake down to a lower level to do some maintenance on it. The dogs had run off with my walking stick I used and had taken from the beaver lodge down at the lake with a nice pointed end. I wanted another one so off to the lake I went. The dogs went with me down to the lake to search for another one. I was being careful to stay on the dry spots along the shore and worked my way around to the lodge. I was checking out a fallen tree to find a good way to navigate around it when I heard the buzzing. I froze and started scanning the area to look for it. At the end of the tree, about 3-4 feet away, near a patch of dried grass (it was early autumn) was a rattlesnake. It was absolutely massive. It was coiled up, head poised for striking, tail buzzing and was probably at least 18-24 inches across. I've no idea how long it was. In the very quick assessment I also registered the color while not the species. It was leucistic. I backed up slowly and bolted. I got to the house completely winded, gasping for my little sister to go get my dad. He followed me back down there and it was gone. To date it is the only rattlesnake we've ever seen on the property. And the family has lived there for many decades. I did not get my walking stick.

 

[ColtHandorf]

If you put ceramic eggs would it be something that give the snakes problems

Venomous snakes do not generally prey on eggs like constrictors do. Water moccasins (cotton mouths) have been observed eating small dead items though.

 

[TexasTurkeyMama]

Rattlers do not eat chickens. Chicks and ducklings, perhaps. The rattler's venom is a predigestive aid. It swallows its prey whole after stunning and killing with the venom. Rattlers also do not establish a terrortory (no I did not misspell my coined word) so we do not expect to see it parked by the gate soon.