I killed a snake.

[texasgirl]

I can't believe I did it
I hate snakes. Noone was home and I saw it slithering and had a choice of a shovel or hubby's gun, since I don't like guns, I grabbed the shovel. It was in the sand pit that used to be my pool under a wild flower shrub. When I found it, it was coiled up and I just slammed it. MY big dog was sniffing after it and I was afraid he would get bit. DH got home and told me it is a copperhead.
{{{{{SHIVER}}}}} That is why I don't like living out here. Hubby can't believe that I did it
Anyone else have a snake story?

 

[licia]

A few years ago I'd been to a garden club meeting where our speaker had talked about protecting birds' nests from predators - such as snakes. As I drove up to the driveway I saw something laying across the driveway with something sticking up and for the life of me could not figure out what it was. When I drove closer I saw it was a rattlesnake with a squirrel in his mouth. He was trying to swallow it and the squirrel was too large. I backed out and yelled for my neighbor to come with a gun. He killed the snake. We'd never had one that close to the house that we knew about.

 

[shannon in KS]

I have many snake stories growing up on a farm, but this summer, I was lazily basking in the sun, and a snake slithers by. (this is my sunspot, mr. snake!) So, I thought, nah, he is going about his business, and gently shoo him along with my flip flop. And he was a little baby, maybe a foot long, but suspiciously looked like a rattlesnake- which are more venemous than full grown. He turns around, and coils up and start trying to strike at me! H#ll no, not gonna work that way, THIS IS MY SUNSPOT! So I do what a typical girl would do, start squealing and jumping around- HEEELLOOOOO! HE IS TRYING TO EAT ME!!!! And no one comes to my rescue. I throw a few yard objects at him, hose, chair, whatever is nearby. Not budging. So I pick up a hand spade- yeah one of those things that are like 8 inches long, and start swinging at him, and he finally starts to slither the other way, and I am nothing but vengeful at this point, and whack his head off, cowardly when he turned his back, I know, but he was exhibiting some serious cobra tendencies, mind you. you go Texasgirl, WE ARE WOMEN, HEAR US ROAR (10 minutes later after all the squealing and carrying on) You would think the way we act would annoy the little critters to a miserable death, wouldn't ya?

 

[DampCharcoal]

Wow! That was a good kill! Copperheads are REAL nasty! When I was a kid, my dad and I would go fishing and camp out at an old log cabin on my Grandpa's farm in the southeastern hills of Ohio and I remember copperhead snakeskins hanging from the rafters. I hated sleeping there, for obvious reasons!

 

[texasgirl]

I have many snake stories growing up on a farm, but this summer, I was lazily basking in the sun, and a snake slithers by. (this is my sunspot, mr. snake!) So, I thought, nah, he is going about his business, and gently shoo him along with my flip flop. And he was a little baby, maybe a foot long, but suspiciously looked like a rattlesnake- which are more venemous than full grown. He turns around, and coils up and start trying to strike at me! H#ll no, not gonna work that way, THIS IS MY SUNSPOT! So I do what a typical girl would do, start squealing and jumping around- HEEELLOOOOO! HE IS TRYING TO EAT ME!!!! And no one comes to my rescue. I throw a few yard objects at him, hose, chair, whatever is nearby. Not budging. So I pick up a hand spade- yeah one of those things that are like 8 inches long, and start swinging at him, and he finally starts to slither the other way, and I am nothing but vengeful at this point, and whack his head off, cowardly when he turned his back, I know, but he was exhibiting some serious cobra tendencies, mind you. you go Texasgirl, WE ARE WOMEN, HEAR US ROAR (10 minutes later after all the squealing and carrying on) You would think the way we act would annoy the little critters to a miserable death, wouldn't ya?

DH is looking at me like I have gone insane. I am laughing so hard I'm crying just from the visual.
Normally, I yell for him or the boys. The first time I saw one, I was in the garage making my yard art and it was right at the door. They make the most awful scratching sound on concrete, I ran to the house door and the boys came running with the pellet gun, he didn't have the 410 then. I took it and was shaking so bad, the boys both went for it and tried to shoot it. That one got away. I called DH and he came home from down the road. Never found that one. I was walking very slowly for weeks after that.

 

[mudbug]

OH, ick. Sorry you had to go thru that, tex.

My mom's parents used to have a cabin out in the desert in SoCal. Every time they went out there for vacation Gramp had to go in first with his gun and kill all the rattlesnakes.

 

[Robin]

Unless they are too close to my house I just leave them alone. They are actually good because they eat small rodents. Most snakes are as afraid of us and we are of them

 

[pdswife]

Good hit Texas.

Once while Paul and I were hiking up a trail to go fishing
he stopped and said "Hey look, it's a snake" He started poking at
it wish his fishing pole. It uncoiled and we saw that it was a rattler!!! Just a small one but big enough to freak me out. Luckily the snake wasn't in the mood to fight. It just crawled away. I tease Paul all the time now about being brave enough to tickle a rattle snake.

 

[texasgirl]

Unless they are too close to my house I just leave them alone. They are actually good because they eat small rodents. Most snakes are as afraid of us and we are of them

I wouldn't usually go killing it myself, but, it was about 10 feet from my front door. I know that it probably wouldn't be able to get on the porch,but, I wasn't taking a chance on meeting it inside with the doggie door

 

[Robin]

I wouldn't usually go killing it myself, but, it was about 10 feet from my front door. I know that it probably wouldn't be able to get on the porch,but, I wasn't taking a chance on meeting it inside with the doggie door

Yes actually it could have gotten on the porch. A long time ago one got into our covered porch! Thank goodness I just peaked through the window before I opened it. It was coiled right next to the door. I screamed for my mother's boyfriend to take care of it.. It wasn't poisonous though.

 

[middie]

oooh copperheads nasty nasty snakes. a relative of mine in west virginia cleaning up her yard and picked up an old coffee can that had a copperhead coiled up inside. a fang punctured the skin on one of her fingers and she almost died not once but TWICE ! i think if both fangs got her she would not be around today. my mother almost got bit by one too when she was a little girl... maybe 5 or 6, but her grandfather killed it before it bit my mom's leg.
though i have to admit it's kind of amusing to drive through a state and see the roadkill is chickens and copperheads !

 

[buckytom]

i always tell people that i'm hiking with that in snake country, always make heavy footsteps in grasses or dense brush (they will sense you coming and take off), and always step onto a log then away from it, not directly over as you may startle a snake that will cause it to strike at your heel.
they're nasty but necessary little monsters...

 

[AllenOK]

I have to agree with Robin. Snakes do benefit the environment. Granted, I live in a small city, so I'm not really expecting to see any snakes, except maybe a garter snake.

As long as I know a snake is non-venomous, I'll leave it alone. However, if I ever catch a venomous snake in my yard, it's dead, as I have small children. Out in the woods, I tend to leave all snakes alone.

Back when I was in New Mexico working for the Boy Scouts, my parents had adopted a stray puppy, a Border Collie - Chow mix. One day, it was in one corner of the yard, barking like crazy, and wouldn't move. My sister's boyfriend went out to check it out, and immediately came back in asking for a shovel. He said there was a nest of baby copperheads on the north side of the house. He disposed of them all with the shovel.

A few years ago, my MIL was mowing her yard (the next street over) and hit a snake with the mower. She is deathly afraid of snakes. Once she realized what she had hit, she became petrified. A few minutes later, she was able to push the mower over to the window to call PeppA out, but she could not release the mower under her own power.

Something else to remember, is that there are probably more venomous snakes than most people realize. Many snakes are what are known as "rear-fanged", meaning that their fanges are in the rear of their mouth, and they have to gnaw on you to invenomate you. If I remember right, there is a variety of garter snake like this!

 

[Constance]

We live in the country and have LOTS of snakes, but they are mostly rat snakes and chicken snakes. Since we also have lots of field mice (bigger and hungrier than house mice), they are welcome here. I used to find them in my greenhouse, and in the back of the shop among the bags of potting mix, both places where the mice liked to burrow and nest. Snakes still like to hang out under my deck, or lay across the hot tub cover.
We do have rattlesnakes and copperheads down in the Shawnee Forest, but the only poisonous snake we have in this immediate area is the Water Moccasin, also called the "Cottonmouth". He likes ponds and swampy places in the river bottoms.
I've done lots of treking in the woods, and found that if you make plenty of noise tramping through the underbrush, the snakes will get out of your way. I have had a few close calls with Copperheads though...they don't seem as shy as other snakes.
I guess my worse encounter with a snake was when one crawled in one my wren houses, ate all the baby birds, and was too engorged to get out the little entrance for several days, until he digested his meal. That made me mad...I love my birds, wrens in particular.

 

[Barbara L]

I have a snake story that might bring a tear to your eye---but I have to go take my class to the computer lab! I'll tell my story when I am off of work.

Barbara

 

[Ken]

Anyone else have a snake story?

Sort of. I was kind of half asleep in a dream state....when I spotted what I thought was a snake.
I jump out of bed all panicked....and breathlessly ask Alix, "Did you see that fuzzy snake?!"
It was the cat's tail sticking out from under the bed. Oops.

 

[Alix]

I notice you don't mention my helpless laughter for some time after. Poor kitty thought you were going to jump out of bed and smack her with a shoe or something.

 

[texasgirl]

Sort of. I was kind of half asleep in a dream state....when I spotted what I thought was a snake.
I jump out of bed all panicked....and breathlessly ask Alix, "Did you see that fuzzy snake?!"
It was the cat's tail sticking out from under the bed. Oops.
__________________

I notice you don't mention my helpless laughter for some time after. Poor kitty thought you were going to jump out of bed and smack her with a shoe or something.

OMG...

That is hilarious. Alix I can just imagine it, big macho man, jumping up and attacking the poor cat. I think the cat may have gotten the better end of that one if he had. LOL

 

[Alix]

No kidding! She looks like a big old lump 'o fur, but do not be mistaken, she is actually a Cuisinart with fur!

 

[wasabi]

I have a horror story about this blue and black snake that tried to eat my puppy.

And then it tried to eat the fishes on my puter.