I have a snake in my garden!!!!!

[Stephanie]

Black Racers and Garden Snakes=good
Copperheads, Water Moccasins, Coral Snakes=BAD!!!

Right, but have you ever been chased by a black racer? I have. It ain't fun.

**GULP** chase you???

[cswitwer]

Just found out my elderly grandfather has caught 52 mice in his house since December. Last month, they mysteriously stopped appearing. He thought he'd caught them all.

Then last week, he was in bed and heard a clinking sound in the living room. When he went in to investigate, there was a 4 foot snake making its way amongst my grandmother's knick knacks on the living room book case. He didnt' catch it. Guess it's still there.

And I guess that's where the mice all started disappearing to...

[Stephanie]

Just found out my elderly grandfather has caught 52 mice in his house since December. Last month, they mysteriously stopped appearing. He thought he'd caught them all.

Then last week, he was in bed and heard a clinking sound in the living room. When he went in to investigate, there was a 4 foot snake making its way amongst my grandmother's knick knacks on the living room book case. He didnt' catch it. Guess it's still there.

And I guess that's where the mice all started disappearing to...

**shivers** in the HOUSE???

I guess he's got a pet or "guardian angel"

Does he have a name yet?

[sunny]

Stephanie - my sister had a moccasin in her yard this week. They are clearing out the woods to build more homes (she lives about a mile from the river). I ain't going into her back yard no more. Pool or not!

[Stephanie]

Stephanie - my sister had a moccasin in her yard this week. They are clearing out the woods to build more homes (she lives about a mile from the river). I ain't going into her back yard no more. Pool or not!

UGH!!! I'm glad noone got hurt!

[cswitwer]

No, no name for the snake 'angel' yet.

Weird that we were just talking about this-- I just saw my first 'wild' snake near a flowerbed on the street yesterday. I have a phobia, so I hope that's not an experience I repeat often! And I think it'll be a while before I go back to Grandpa's house (he's in Illinois)!

chris

[GrimReaper]

Here's a Grim snake story..... I was messing around in the horse barn looking for something I can't even remember now... and I saw this cute little (5") snake. I thought if Steve Irwin can do it, so can I, so I picked the little guy up and looked him eye to eye. Well they say God protects fools, he did me, because the little guy was a pygmy rattle snake.... none too happy to be bothered by the likes of me!!!!! He coiled, I screamed, dropped him and ran!!!! If I were a snake it would be a "chicken snake"...lol. I learned an important lesson... if I want to see snakes....watch Animal Planet.

[sunny]

Here's a Grim snake story..... I was messing around in the horse barn looking for something I can't even remember now... and I saw this cute little (5") snake. I thought if Steve Irwin can do it, so can I, so I picked the little guy up and looked him eye to eye. Well they say God protects fools, he did me, because the little guy was a pygmy rattle snake.... none too happy to be bothered by the likes of me!!!!! He coiled, I screamed, dropped him and ran!!!! If I were a snake it would be a "chicken snake"...lol. I learned an important lesson... if I want to see snakes....watch Animal Planet.

Oh my, but you are brave to have even picked the snake up! I'm glad you didn't get bitten.

[GrimReaper]

I love all kinds of wildlife.... even snakes!! This particular snake just looked so cute.... I had to see him. But snake picker-upper beware!!!!!

[sunny]

You have more guts than I do Grim!!

[Stephanie]

GEEZ Grim!!

To tell you the truth, if he was only 5" long, I may have done the same thing or looked at him long enough for him to bite me. My "snakey" was just too darn big to even contemplate it!

Chris - that is a coincidence!

[Dee Bee]

Gosh, ever since this thread started, an amazing number of "snake stories" have been cropping up in the news: first the huge python here in Boynton Beach, and now construction in Orlando (visit the newly-posted "FL Construction" thread).

A few years ago, after a particularly heavy rain weekend, my neighbor (who rarely used his pool) went to check the skimmer basket and found it filled with writhing baby snakes. It took me a while to check ours (my husband was out of town), which was empty. But everytime we have extended heavy rain (like the past week), I get a little edgy about checking our basket....

And speaking of moccasins, the lake near my grandparents' cottage in Burlington, WI where I spent most of my summers as a kid had frequent sightings of those snakes. And yet because it had a sandy beach, the lake was always packed with people. Apparently, back in the 50's-early 60's people were more naive (or just plain dumber!).

[feederband]

DO NOT KILL SNAKES!!!!.... It is bad enough we wipe out their habitat everyday...If you live in Florida and have children learn what snakes are venomous there is only a few.....Snakes are just part of your environment. Snakes do not attack people they run away. They will bite if cornered, Just keep a EYE on the kids. Kids will pickup anything....A stray dog will put a worse bit on you than a non venomous snake .But you don't chase it down with a shovel and chop the dog up....

[stormraiser]

Yes, chase you!!!

The Black Racer is the only native snake species which I have ever seen attack a person who was not trying to capture or molest it. It was a warm May morning. My brother and I were loading bales of fescue hay onto a truck. My brother felt something hitting against his leg. Looking down he found a small adult Black Racer trying to bite him through his pant leg. Racers were common in the area so he just grasped the snake and tossed to the side so it would not be run over by the truck. Within a moment, the spunky little snake was back attacking his leg. This time he carried the snake further away before releasing it. Of course, the snake could not inflict any harm through the bluejeans. We speculated that we may have interrupted a male during courtship, but we did not see another Racer in the vicinity.

Black Racers and Garden Snakes=good
Copperheads, Water Moccasins, Coral Snakes=BAD!!!

Right, but have you ever been chased by a black racer? I have. It ain't fun.

**GULP** chase you???

[sunny]

DO NOT KILL SNAKES!!!!.... It is bad enough we wipe out their habitat everyday...If you live in Florida and have children learn what snakes are venomous there is only a few.....Snakes are just part of your environment. Snakes do not attack people they run away. They will bite if cornered, Just keep a EYE on the kids. Kids will pickup anything....A stray dog will put a worse bit on you than a non venomous snake .But you don't chase it down with a shovel and chop the dog up....

Uh - okay.

Stormraiser - is that the snake that "whips" you? I remember my mom telling me about one that would chase you and it's tail would whip back and forth on your legs.

[feederband]

DO NOT KILL SNAKES!!!!.... It is bad enough we wipe out their habitat everyday...If you live in Florida and have children learn what snakes are venomous there is only a few.....Snakes are just part of your environment. Snakes do not attack people they run away. They will bite if cornered, Just keep a EYE on the kids. Kids will pickup anything....A stray dog will put a worse bit on you than a non venomous snake .But you don't chase it down with a shovel and chop the dog up....

Uh - okay.

Stormraiser - is that the snake that "whips" you? I remember my mom telling me about one that would chase you and it's tail would whip back and forth on your legs.

In Florida there is a snake called a coach whip, it will use it tail as a defensive posture that is the only one I know that will do this. The racer will rattle his tail to confuse predators.

[sunny]

That's it - a coach whip!!!

[JenBayles]

Let's not forget the ever-popular "hoop snake" either.....

[sunny]

What is a "hoop snake"? I haven't heard of that one!

Hey - are you an old-married lady again yet?!!

[feederband]

A "hoop snake" is a urban legend..........Some say they have seen a snake that will bite its tail and roll down hills like a hoop to get away. I have delt with hunreds of snakes there is know way they can do this.....