Cautionary Tail

[jayco]

The recent warm(actually hot)weather of mid-June has brought out all the summer critters. For me, the most noticeable of these are snakes.Here on the farm,we've seen several blacksnakes and watersnakes.Seeing them doesn't bother me so much,but their appearance serves as a remender to watch out for the poisonous snake varieties we also have; rattlesnakes and coppperheads.The rattlesnakes are actually pretty rare here,but the copperheads are quite common. One hot summer day about two years ago,I was rummaging through the scrap pile behind my shop;looking for a piece of 1 in. pipe I needed for a project.By the way,there's a lot of rusty stuff,coal,weeds, and what-have-you back there It's a mess! After some looking,I finally located the piece of pipe I needed. I started to reach for it,when out of the corner of my eye I saw something MOVE! Less than two feet away from the pipe lay a copperhead! Fortunately, I didn't finish that reach,because they can strike two feet when they want to.He was just lying there under some rusty rod and pipe. This was the first time I ever saw one in the scrap pile. Copperheads are notorious for their ability to blend into their environment.They are all but invisable in dry, brown leaves on the forest floor.Their dull,mottled markings of light and dark brown on their backs makes for perfect camoflage.In short, the also look just like rusty iron!They're not very large snakes;most are 30 inches or less in length. But they are quite poisonous! A bite from one of these snakes can be a serious medical matter.
Years ago, my aunt was bitten on the hand while picking strawberries.Within minutes, she had went into shock and had to be rushed to the hospital.She was given anti-venom, but still had to stay in the hospital for nearly two weeks.She was not quite well for several months. Now 81,she recalls the incident as The sickest I ever was in my life.
So if you live in snake country(a lot of us do),be careful around those piles of rocks,old boards,old logs,junk yards,etc.Snakes like to hide under stuff and often give no warning of their presence. Be CAREFUL!
Incidentally,the snake I saw quickly disapeared under the scrap pile.I haven't seen him since. He's probably still there....somewhere! James Flannery

[Dave Shepard]

I don't like snakes. Seldom see anything other than garters around here, but there are rattlers and black snakes as well.


Dave

[Sam Salvati]

My brother almost stepped on a poison snake, cannot remember the name of it though. It had one little oak leaf on top of it, all coiled up, I told him "WATCH IT !!!!" and stopped him, one more step and, well I don't want to think about what might have happened.

[Joseff]

Copperheads often give off a strong musky scent that smells a lot like cucumbers. Some of them also have very bright shiny heads, like a new penny, thus the name.
Joseff

[jayco]

I had my latest snake adventure just this morning. I did a little forging early this morning, but it got hot here early in the day.
So, I decided to pick blackberries instead.

I climbed the high hill to where the berries were and began filling my bucket.
I was picking berries and daydreaming of cobblers and such things, when I happened to look down and saw a rather large copperhead glide silently into the heart of the blackberry bushes.

Evidently, he had been within a foot of where I was standing. Lucky for me he was not in the mood for biting.

At first I kinda thought this was a "bad luck day", but no, this was a "GOOD LUCK DAY!"

James

[Dan W]

We have a lot of whats called pygmy rattlers around here. About 6-8 inches long the xxxx things look just like pine or rotting bark. I've had two run ins with them in the last 8 months.
I actually had one strike the toe of my shoe and have one fang hang up in the leather. Fortunately it didn't penetrate. But I did have to pull the xxxx thing off my shoe. The second time I reached to move a downed pine limb and had one actually strike my thumb nail and skid off. Scared the xxxx out of me. While not life threatening, they can cause the loss of a finger or toe or a fairly decent portion of soft tissue.
Xxxx, if its poisonous and crawls, we probably have it in northern Florida.

[Bentiron1946]

We have a lot of different species of rattlesnake out here but so far I have not had a serious situation. I bought a snake tong several years ago to remove from the property. I hate to kill them considering the amount of rodents they eat but the thought of them striking the old (me) or the young bothers me. This year so far my neighbor has had two Mohave, three Western Diamond and one Black Tail rattlers and he lets none survive. I do worry about the dogs condensing the cost of anti-venom, to save a dog it costs around $1,200 so if one of mine gets bit it is goodbye.:(

[ironrosefarms]

Normally in my parts poisonous snakes are kind of a mystical creature that they say exists but are seldom seen. This year has been very different. I think the heavy rains and flooding have sent all kinds of varmints to find new homes. So far this year on our 18 acres I have seen 3 copper heads at different times. I killed 2 with a shovel and the third escaped or maybe I escaped??? I am a bit concerned about not only my kids but my dogs and our livestock as well. The scout camp I was at earlier this summer has both copper heads and timber rattlers, per the US forest service personnel I spoke with they said their observations had been that snake populations seem to be on the rise.

So this is a very timely and good heed to using common sense and keeping alert!

[ThomasPowers]

Well I see a large king snake around my yard about once a year and the neighbor's dog has a reputation for killing rattlers. He's between me and the arroyo which would be their best vector to my area. I tend to chase off the road runner though as all the lizards do a good job of cutting down on insects.

Now on the roads around here we see some pretty big rattlers; usually flat and with the rattles removed before I get there...5' long and *fat* not uncommon.

I'm wary around my scrap pile though.

Edited July 24, 2008 by ThomasPowers

[Golden_eagle]

I have seen copperheads, and Cottonmouths here... I rarely see the Copperheads but have shot two and dropped an Axe on one of the three cottonmouths that i have crossed paths with,

[jayco]

I overheard a couple of guys at the local hardware talking about seeing copperheads around here recently.

The funny thing is that these snakes are scarce for a few years, then,....they're everywhere. Must be a big year for copperheads around here!

One of the things that makes me a little afraid of being bitten is that from what I can learn about snake bites, everyone has a different tolerance level to the venom.
I've heard of old folks who just put a poltice on the location of the bite and claimed to be alright after a couple days.

My aunt was copperhead 'bit', 40 years ago, and went into extreme shock. If my uncle hadn't been there, I don't know what would have happened to her.
She spent 2 weeks in the hospital and was 'poorly' for the rest of the summer.

[Ferrous Beuler]

We have a lot of whats called pygmy rattlers around here. About 6-8 inches long the xxxx things look just like pine or rotting bark. I've had two run ins with them in the last 8 months.
I actually had one strike the toe of my shoe and have one fang hang up in the leather. Fortunately it didn't penetrate. But I did have to pull the xxxx thing off my shoe. The second time I reached to move a downed pine limb and had one actually strike my thumb nail and skid off. Scared the xxxx out of me. While not life threatening, they can cause the loss of a finger or toe or a fairly decent portion of soft tissue.
Xxxx, if its poisonous and crawls, we probably have it in northern Florida.

Hey JAFO, was just wondering if these little critters you have there might be baby timber rattlers? I once saw a snake show on t.v. which explained how baby rattlers are particularly dangerous because of the amount of venom they inject when they bite. The big ones just give a quick little squirt, not all of it as they know to conserve their ammo. The little ones though, well they aint so smart yet and they just latch on and give all they've got all at once.
Around here believe it or not, being so far north, we have in these parts what is said to be the most venomous of all the rattlers, the massasauga rattle snake which is also the smallest usually 25 inches or so and rare. I have never seen one and I aint- a- goin' lookin' niether! They are protected by law so you can't kill 'em. Around here such vermin gets the 22 gun salute such as a coon that was snooping around the yard in broad daylight and did'nt care people were around and a fox that was really acting odd. I pulled in one night and found this fox next to my deck chewing on an empty milk jug. I walked right up to the edge of the deck and told it to SCRAM! No response from the fox, just kept right on a-chewin' and never looked up.I went in the house, got my trusty shooitn' iron and came back out. Still there, still gnawing on that plastic jug. Pop. Done. And a whole gallon of bleach on the little puddle of blood it left. Then on the shovel to the firepit along with the jug for the cremation. The instant my headlights swung into the driveway that fox should have been G-O-N-E but it never so much as looked up once, just kept on biting that plastic jug. That fox looked perfectly healthy, in fact in was quite a nice looking fox. Too bad. Dan:confused:

[keykeeper]

Yep, sounds like that fox had it coming. I once had a possum like that just looked at me as I pulled in one night. Six shots with a pellet pistol to the head, nothing, just looked at me. So, got out the .22 and point blanked him with a birdshot round. Still nothing, just that stare. So, I choked his lights out with a contraption I made some time ago for snarin' critters outta houses. That "critter gitter" still sees used from time to time. Just a piece of 3/4 inch aluminum conduit, with a 3/8 inch nylon rope doubled and pushed through it. Works like a charm.

(We got a lot of calls like that when I served as a Vol. Firefighter. "Can you send someone out, there's a squirrel in my refrigerator." True story, ya just can't make this stuff up. Oh yeah, I forgot the possum under the mobile home sink. Caller stated "When I opened the cabinet, something hissed at me, so I called you guys! Not to mention the iguana and its owner rescued from a tree. The lady climbed up to get iguana, then couldn't get back down. Again, you just can't make this stuff up!)

[Bentiron1946]

I asked my vet about dogs and copperheads, he is also a herpetologist in addition to being a veterinarian, he said that usually there is not much harm to coon hound sized dogs or humans. There is no specific antivenin for them but that there is for rattlers. There is also a vaccine for dogs for rattlesnake bites but is not FDA approved. He does recommend it for bird dogs as he feels that it will get the dog to the vet if you are way out yonder and need the extra time to get your dog into medical treatment.

[jayco]

Dan, Aaron, the animals you guys describe as not paying any attention to your presence,........sounds a little the symptoms of rabies.

My dad always said that if you see an animal that seemed to be in a daze or oblivious to your presence........that it could be rabies.

A few times in my youth I remember seeing dogs(sometimes cats, too) rapidly trotting up or down the road near my home.

Dad would shout at them or call to them........if they looked around or responded in any way, he figured they were probably rabies free.

We haven't had any outbreaks of the disease in years(that I know of)

just something I remember from when I was a kid.........Funny, I hadn't thought about that in years........

James

[coltpax]

I hate snakes. I keep my 20 ga. loaded if i see one and have a chance to go get it. Might be overkill, but atleast they are dead. Done killed 3 baby copperheads and saw about 5 more.