What kind of snake is this?

[Brindlebtch]

Wow, I just read Michigan only has ONE poisonous snake! Lucky ya'll!

Round here poisonous snakes tend to be heavy bodied and, of course have bigger jaws that give them that triangular head.

I found a hog nose in the yard last year that made me look at it real hard 'cause it was so fat from eating all my toads and it was about 3 ft long. I pinned it with a rake until I verified what it was, then just let it go.

I can't blame you for killing the snake in an urgent moment. It is hard to identify one when it is striking at your dog.

 

[Faverolle]

Quote:
Or maybe just walked away and left it alone????


It's an eastern milk snake, absolutely harmless

Yes but... at the time he did not know that, and it was striking at his animal, in the area his granddaughter was in a minute before. It's not a case of a snake napping in the sun harmless, this was an unknown snake that was striking.

Maybe I missed it but I thought he said he went back out with the dog and it was shaking it's tail and striking at him not the dog. Either way the snake is dead and hopefully he will be able to recognize one as to being harmless in the future. Michigan only has one venomous snake and they are uncommon and protected so he probably will not ever have an issue with one at his place.

 

[Cetawin]

Quote:
Yes but... at the time he did not know that, and it was striking at his animal, in the area his granddaughter was in a minute before. It's not a case of a snake napping in the sun harmless, this was an unknown snake that was striking.

Maybe I missed it but I thought he said he went back out with the dog and it was shaking it's tail and striking at him not the dog. Either way the snake is dead and hopefully he will be able to recognize one as to being harmless in the future. Michigan only has one venomous snake and they are uncommon and protected so he probably will not ever have an issue with one at his place.

Here ya go this clears it right up....

The OP's first paragraph read as follows:

My daughter and grand daughter were in the back yard with my jack russel, the biggest baby of a lapdog. Screams and them beating a path to the back door set me on edge only to hear them telling me that they found a snake coiled up that my jack russel went after... it was coiled up, shaking its tail and snapping at them...


nuff said... it is a harmless and actually useful snake but when you do not know, you cannot take a chance with kids out and about.

His second statement reads as follows:

Well, told Ash to put my grand baby back inside, went outside with the lil pup, and she took me right back to the spot where they found the snake.

Not sure if it is a Masagua, but sure enough it was shaking its tail and trying to snap at me.

 

[TennesseeTruly]

Listen, I'm the last person to kill something unless its threatening but if the situation was the same, I would have shot first and ask questions later. I'm the person who relocates spiders outside when found inside my house despite being bitten twice by black house spiders that have sent me to the hospital. (not deadly but venom will knock you for a loop if you're bitten on your face/head like I have been)

If a snake imitates a rattler, its a goner here...period! And I'm a huge tree hugger!

Laurie

 

[Boyd]

Quote:
Yes but... at the time he did not know that, and it was striking at his animal, in the area his granddaughter was in a minute before. It's not a case of a snake napping in the sun harmless, this was an unknown snake that was striking.

Maybe I missed it but I thought he said he went back out with the dog and it was shaking it's tail and striking at him not the dog. Either way the snake is dead and hopefully he will be able to recognize one as to being harmless in the future. Michigan only has one venomous snake and they are uncommon and protected so he probably will not ever have an issue with one at his place.

Yeah, I have almost no experience with Michigan Snakes, and felt bad after shooting it and trying to figure out what it was. I guess I should have mentioned that I went back out after it because at that point I wasn't sure if the dog had been bitten and wanted to catch/kill if necessary to take to the vet if anti-venom is needed. If it bit her, I didn't want to waste any time

Being used to a place where half of the snakes and spiders you'll find running around are poisonous, I didn't want to take any unnecessary chances with the grandbaby or my lil Lassie dog.

 

[luvarabhorses]

I've chopped up two copperheads since I moved here. I felt bad about it believe it or not. They aren't aggressive and sort of sit there while you hack them up. Still, they were near the house and there is me, the dogs and the horses.

 

[lisahaschickens]

Everybody, Boyd is sad that he killed it since it was harmless and he says he wants to learn his Michigan snakes better, but he acted this way because he thought his family could be in danger... then he came on here to learn more for the future. As much as I am a snake lover and I am goofy and will personally catch and move venomous snakes rather than kill them... that is not the recommended course of action for most people. Let's not say anything more negative about the death of the snake. Boyd is not a person who just kills all snakes. This was understandable. I have seen threads like this get locked after people give the OP a hard time for killing the harmless snake. And maybe it's justified when the person knew better and killed it anyway, but in this case, Boyd did his best when he wasn't sure, and he wants to learn for the future and was looking out for his family first, which is very respectable.

 

[Uppity Peon]

Massasaugas are a type of rattler. Did it have a rattle on its tail?

 

[Sillystunt]

Boyd, i would have done the same! I saw a black racer yesterday and since i have learned what that snake is....i let it cross my yard into the other. That being said, i still have NO regrets killing the cotton mouth in my backyard.

We tend to react differently when kids are around and rather ask questions later. Better safe then sorry!

Do you even have coral snakes up there???LOL PLEASE GOD DO NOT EVER LET ONE CROSS MY PATH!!!

 

[Boyd]

just the Masagua...... only poisonous snake in mich supposedly