New tractor causing snake problems

[knute_m]

About a year ago we bought a new place that had mostly been a weekend getaway for the previous owners. He was a consummate collector of CRAP, and this was his depot. Lumber, poles, fencing, big cable spools, pallets, rotten firewood, rocks, junk, and more junk. He left a lot of it. Many became overgrown piles that I didn't want to stick my hands into.

It was time for a newer tractor -- one with a loader. We got it about three weeks ago. I've been cleaning and clearing almost every evening since then.

The snakes are not happy! Rat snakes. Racers. Nasty bull snakes! I'm even dreaming about snakes. I feel like I've got the DTs.

Last night after dark I was walking past the tractor. One of our senior cats was staring very intently into the loader bucket. About a five foot black rat snake seemed quite comfortable lounging in there.

Even though my wife has been a country girl most of her life, she has an irrational fear of snakes. I hope she doesn't die of a heart attack if she comes across one!

Anyway, I took Mr. Black Snake for a walk up to the neighbor's pasture. I hear owls up there at night. I hope one of them had a good midnight snack!

 

[riptides]

Haha.... Sorry... Totally relating to this. Here is my story - so far.

Bought an old Dairy Farm. With plenty of old outbuidings. Plenty of snakes too. Somewhere on this board you will see a snake crawling up the inside wall of our farmhouse.

About a week ago, I removed 5 black snakes to another area of the farm. Two got away. That was seven (7) snakes in one day. They ALL were in excess of 4 feet long.

Best we can do is keep cleaning the place up, and keep the grasses short and away from the houses.

Since we aare remodelling (hahaha) the farm house, we have uncovered the covert hiding places in the process. Amazing where these snakes (as viewed by the skins) ended up. I leave it to your imagination as to where we found snake skins in a two story house.

Good luck, and keep a bucket close.

-Mike Z.

 

[GeneD14]

You are a braver man than me! In 10 plus years I have only seen 1 small snake on our property. I don't think that I could take seeing several big snakes in one day. I know my wife and kids wouldn't set foot out in the yard if it was like you describe.

I have heard the same tips like keeping your grass short, eliminating hiding places, etc... I hope they work for you. Good luck.

 

[knute_m]

I think it is most appropriate that "riptides" was the first to post about this topic, since he lives in Catlett, VA. If you were to ask many of my children's generation, and quite a few of my generation, they could tell you about the Great Catlett Snake Explosion.

It goes back about 25 years ago to friends who moved into what had to be the most snake infested place anywhere -- a few miles east of "downtown" Catlett, near the vibrant crossroads of Bristersburg.

One of our friend's outbuildings was really infested with snakes. He'd had it. Using his best West Virginia logic, he decided he'd burn them out. He took a full 5-gallon can of gasoline and drenched about a 25 foot path to the building. Then he doused the inside of the building. The 5 gallon can was still about half full, and he put it in middle of the shed. He went to the end of the path where the gasoline started, and lit it.

He lived to tell about it, but the story is best told by his now-adult children. After the almost immediate explosion, it rained snakes into all the nearby trees and bushes. It did get the snakes out of his shed -- and probably clear into the neighboring county.

They continued to have many snake encounteres after that. When we helped them move out of the house a few years later, our friend had his valuables stuffed into various hiding places in the basement. I'm not sure how many really big snake skins we pulled out along with the valuables.

Watch where you step,

Knute

 

[riptides]

I..........Great Catlett Snake Explosion...........

It goes back about 25 years ago to friends who moved into what had to be the most snake infested place anywhere -- a few miles east of "downtown" Catlett, near the vibrant crossroads of Bristersburg.

............
Knute

Really?

I mean Bristerburg is just a mile or two down the road. I'll have to ask some of the locals.

Your not pulling my leg?

I relocated from a county not 15 minutes away, so I consider myself local to the area, but the people are spread out a little farther and we are still meeting our neighbors.

Thanks for sharing that.

And I removed another snake a minute ago, it was heading to the farm house, and the roofers saw it.

-Mike Z.

 

[Paddy]

Rat/black snakes are good snakes. They are not agressive unless ....your a rat. now were on to something. I have introduced my family to the snakes in the field, yard and sometimes the house!. No one gets to excited any more.

Unless it's a poison type, let it be

 

[knute_m]

I mean Bristerburg is just a mile or two down the road. I'll have to ask some of the locals.

Your not pulling my leg?

-Mike Z.

Mike,

I sent you a PM with more info. about our Bristersburg snake man.

Knute

 

[MotorSeven]

Rat/corn/racer/bull....all good snakes. Box 'em up and send them to me, i would much rather have them keep the wood rat and mouse population down in the shed where the tractor lives. Snakes don't chew wiring and clog exhaust pipes with food/nest materials. I keep a couple of rolled up outdoor carpets at our campsite. Every year we have to clean out a couple of rat nests when un-rolling. Last year we found 2 very fat black racers who when unrolled just looked at us and i coulda swear i heard one burp. They both were picked up and let loose about 50' away at the base of a rooty sycamore. We also have a diamond backed water snake that suns on a log at the swimming hole...every day same spot. I always take the time to let my wife, daughter and her friends coon finger the snakes that i catch. My family knows to leave any snake alone that they cannot identify. If you are sure of the type, try carefully pinning one down with a v shaped stick, then grab them behind the head. Showing them up close and personal is the only way most will overcome their fear. I still get the, "hey they are not slimey!" response all the time when someone that never touched a snake finally gets hands on.
RD

 

[heehaw]

how many bird eggs do they eat?? i figure i can kill a whole lot more mice and rats with a 5gal bucket with 3-6 inches of water in the bottom than those snakes will ever eat..so i don't relocate a live black snake; king snake, and what we sometimes call a spreadnadder or hog nose snake..i bring as many of those as i can find home with me.
heehaw

 

[riptides]

Rat/corn/racer/bull....all good snakes. Box 'em up and send them to me

Agreed. But I am keeping them.

so i don't relocate a live black snake

I don't relocate them too far, just mostly away from human traffic area, you know like my house.

-Mike Z.