Young snake ID please

[Sigarms]

Go down to the basement to keep company with one of our cats down there.

Sit down on the couch, and I start thinking "geez".

Needless to say, go outside to take a look (and wanting to move it to one of the back fields).

My first thought was it was a young copperhead, but I've seen copperheads smaller than this one, and the color on this one is darker than any copperhead I've seen. Hard to explain on my end, but the markings also look to "ragged" than what I'm use to from copperheads. Still moved him FAR away from the house and he wasn't happy being handled LOL

Some kind of rat snake?

Generally the only ones I see around here are a buttload of black snakes, some garden snakes and the occasional copperhead (generally one every couple of years and usually out back further away from the house).

 

[TN8Man]

Is it a northern pine snake?

 

[MossRoad]

Maybe brown water snake?

 

[WinterDeere]

No help on the ID, I'm no good with that. But if you want an amusing and related story, I can tell you about the time I was 3 years old, and accidentally set some copperheads free in my parents house.

 

[Sigarms]

Is it a northern pine snake?

Looked, and the pine snake seems lighter in color.

At this point, I think this is the closest match I could find, but again, still lighter in color (stock photo from internet). Young rat snake

 

[4Liberty]

I know this is going to sound dumb because nobody but a nature guy wants to get close enough, in PA and I think most of the continental USA if it has eyes like a cat it’s poisonous. Eyes like a dog not. Around the house poisonous get dead, out in the wild they get all the room they need.

 

[4Liberty]

Looked, and the pine snake seems lighter in color.

At this point, I think this is the closest match I could find, but again, still lighter in color (stock photo from internet). Young rat snake

View attachment 806835

I’d vote some kind of rat snake too. Has that long slender look and it’s climbing. I’ve seen rat snakes go right up a wall.

 

[WinterDeere]

I know this is going to sound dumb because nobody but a nature guy wants to get close enough, in PA and I think most of the continental USA if it has eyes like a cat it’s poisonous. Eyes like a dog not. Around the house poisonous get dead, out in the wild they get all the room they need.

My great-grandfather was killed by a rattlesnake in eastern PA, New Hope to be exact. They're around.

As a kid, my grandmother had the rattle from that snake, kept it in the top drawer of a dresser that's now in my bedroom. I'm not sure what happened to the rattle, many things were stolen when she passed, that particular item really only having sentimental value.

 

[2manyrocks]

I had a very similar looking snake in the house in Middle Tennessee. I had a university professor look at a photo and he ID'd as a non-poisonous something or other even though it looked similar to a copperhead. Can't find his email or I'd tell you what he said it was. Still, not comfortable to see in the house.

 

[MossRoad]