Should I kill a rat snake!!!!

[ForgottenGlen]

We just scare the non-poisonous snakes back into the woods, we don't have baby chicks to worry about. I am only getting 4 eggs a day, and we pick them up each day, so if I loose 1 or 2 it would be ok. We usually see black snakes, racer snakes, rat snakes, but the copperhead that bit my dog had to die. She lived, but had a fat lip for almost 2 weeks.

 

[ForgottenGlen]

Quote:
That snake was after YOU!

 

[wekiva bird]

X2
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[cecilia1959]

I let the snake get away but now the whole family does not want to go in the hen house to gather eggs. I killed one last year because it got into the rabbits pen and one just was dead inside. I do not know if the rat snake thought it had a really big rat and bit off more than he could swallow lol. Now, I will let the dog go ahead of me when I gather eggs. I also have a hen sitting one some silkie eggs. Wow, I love all the help everyone has given me. Thanks to you all!!!!!

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

delete

 

[Capvin]

We will only kill poisonous snakes. Never kill or even bother the others because they are a great benefit. My question is, how do those large snakes get into your runs and coop. I am completely covered with hardware cloth and have not yet had a snake in the run or coop.

 

[Mrs. Fluffy Puffy]

Robin'sBrood :

Mrs. Fluffy Puffy :

Quote:
I just can't stand snakes, I can stand bugs and spiders, but snakes...that is a whole different matter!

My family will not kill gardner snakes, or any other such snake..but rattle snakes DOS! ( Die On Sight ).

~Aspen

You do realize that the OP is talking about a rat snake, not a rattle snake, right? BIG difference!

Yes, I knew she was talking about a Rat snake.

~Aspen​

 

[welovechickens]

I have seen a small rat snake go through 1/2-inch hardware cloth, so if I was building an outdoor pen for baby chicks, I'd use the 1/4-inch hardware cloth. Most snakes big enough to bother your birds/eggs can't get through the 1/2-inch wire.

My cousin just lost all 6 of his 8-week-old pullets to a dog, because he built the chicken run out of chicken wire instead of hardware cloth (which my mom TOLD him to do, and he didn't listen.

)

 

[ladyride]

relocate they good snakes just not for chickens I hate all snakes

will move the good ones to keep the mice population down

 

[YYZ]

I found one of my hens playing with a dead harmless garden snake. Would a hen kill a small snake? ( about 1 ft. long )