Snake control

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How do you keep the snake out of your kids play areas, or anywhere else? There are copperheads around, and I worry about my daughter playing outside any, as they like to sun themselves on the rocks about the area.

Is there anything that is domestic and eats, chases, aggravates snakes into leaving?

-- Marty (Mrs.Puck@Excite.com), April 08, 2001

Answers

wild boar will eat snakes,, but dont know if you want them around either

-- stan (sopal@net-port.com), April 08, 2001.

We use an idling lawn mower or chainsaw a couple times a day around here during snake season and a few moth balls in potential nesting areas. The vibrations and the smell of naptha work together to keep them elswhere. Last season I got down to running the saw on the ground every few days after the first two weeks.

-- Jay Blair in N. AL (jayblair678@yahoo.com), April 08, 2001.

Try bird netting 3/4 x 3/4 holes. Place it loosely along the ground. They try to go through it and get tangled in, place it loosely along the ground at the bottom of fencing. Also you can try catching them with fishing and a small egg. USE a small egg and a number 3/0 hook with 10 feet or whatever length you feel confortable with, with hook tied to the line,use a 20 lb line or 30 lb monofilament. With bent end of hook facing the large end of egg tape it with narrow scotch tape lengthwise, it has to be lengthwise so when he swallows the egg it will not slide off. SORRY IF I OFFEND ANY SNAKE LOVERS. Mary

-- Mary (marwel@microserve.net), April 08, 2001.

Around here we have a lot of rattlesnakes. Cats and guineas are good to warn if one comes near. We also keep the grass mowed quite a ways from the house.We don't go walking off through grass in summer. Don't ever use your hand to turn over a board or rock or other object laying on the ground as snakes like to hide under them--use a hoe, rake or something like that. Watch out around water faucets or sources of water--they will lay around them in the summer. Watch out for them in cool places,especially the chicken house, in summer they go inside to get out of the heat and to eat eggs or baby chicks.Be careful when weeding the garden--they hide in tall grass--especially along the fence lines. I think having lots of pets around the yard is best. Every time we have found one in the yard, it was our cats that warned us about them. Beth

-- beth (dunwells@cctc.net), April 08, 2001.

Marty, The best way to get rid of snakes is to keep their favorite food sources away. Copperheads like to eat mice. Now, if you get a cat or two that are good micers you can solve the problem of the copperheads. If you have a problem with large predators attacking and eating your cats, then I suggest you get a dog to protect them. This sounds weird but, I assure you it works. Sincerely, Ernest http://communities.msn.com/livingoffthelandintheozarks

-- Ernest in the Ozarks (espresso42@hotmail.com), April 09, 2001.


Marty Free Range chickens and cats certainly help my area . My dad would never let us kids kill a black or King snake he thought that got rid of the copper heads. Good Luck JAY in central NC

-- jay vance (jay.l.vance@worldnet.att.net), April 09, 2001.

Yes, I agree with the King snake, or black snakes. They do keep all the others away. Maybe there is somewhere you can buy them and release them around your place. I had a huge one on my old farm and he even sunned in the driveway. He would be in the barn, but I left him alone. He was about 6 foot long. Mockingbirds will let you know snakes are there too, they will keep hitting them. I don't like any snakes except the black ones.

-- Cindy in Ky (solidrockranch@hotmail.com), April 09, 2001.

Marty, We have always had a Norwegian Elkhound dog around. They not only protected our children, they also killed every poisonous snake that they found trying to get in our yard. We haven't seen a Copperhead or Rattlesnake in our yard for several years. We live in a rocky area of northwest Missouri and see them on the road all the time, so I know they are here. Good luck. Winona

-- Winona in MO (thompsonwin45@hotmail.com), April 09, 2001.

Marty,

Get a couple of goslings for your kids to raise. They will be used to one another and the geese will chase the snakes away or at least let you know if one gets near. I have some toulouse-african grey cross geese that I really like. They are very large birds. The toulouse that my kids raised always hangs around where they are playing. The african grey I bought as an adult and he is not quite as friendly. Their offspring are beautiful.

-- Mona in OK (jascamp@ipa.net), April 09, 2001.


Around here the rattlesnakes are bad, but the guineas will kill them, if there are enough of them (guineas). That is the route we are taking, our outside cats keep disappearing. I have a very curious three year old who loves to play outside, and we killed three in the driveway last year. SCARY!!!

-- Gina NM (inhock@pvtnetworks.net), April 09, 2001.


Marty: I understand your concern. Every year in March, I start worrying about pygmys and diamondbacks killing our dogs and cats. we have lost several of each to snake bites. I too am searching for a good solution. In Florida we are into the third year of a drought. Every thing is very crispy. The fire danger is high. But I have noticed the lack of snakes. Maybe it is a coincidence but I like it anyway. I am making sure that all debris is raked up and the only water around is in the chickens pen. Still, I keep an eye out and a shovel handy.

-- Beth (Blayer@aol.com), April 12, 2001.

Hate snakes, actually scared to death of them, was when I wa syounger, but those snakes were not posinous, let me appreciate living up North where there aren't many at least where we lived. then we movved to VA and have copperheads and moccassins. I was once told by an old timer neighbor that the reason we may not see a lot of them on our farm now is because we have goats and they can't stand amonia 9sp) burns their bellys. i do know if you lime around an area they won't enter in, but if there are any in the area they won't slither out either. We have had some success with lime too, just have to keep it up once a month or so, especially after a hard rain. Also moth balls work too, tried that the first yr we lived here, went to the hardware stor, then every wal-Mart within a 60 mile radius, sold out. I didn't ahve luck with the balls working.

-- Bernice (geminigoats@yahoo.com), April 12, 2001.

I have had good luck controlling snakes with the animals we have. A dog, cat, guineas, geese, ducks, and a couple of goats. I think it may be all of the commotion these criters create. Also I try to keep the lawn mowed, limit the amount of brush piles and trim back the under brush as much as possible. Good luck.

-- mike knight (mok63mok@aol.com), April 12, 2001.

My husband swears by this one, get a portable radio and tune it to Howard Stern and turn it up loud.

-- Michelle Curry (curry-wimberley@excite.com), April 13, 2001.

We have 3 rat terriers that LOVE to go after the copperheads.

-- Eve Lyn (evelynv@ipa.net), April 14, 2001.


After reading Berniece's April 12 reply about amonia burning their stomachs I remembered my uncle using it on the farm, a mixture of creasode and malloses and putting it around rock piles and down holes where he said snakes were using the holes. He said it stuck to the skin and ate it away. Also said, using it down rat holes also got rid of the rars as it did the same to the rats by eating away their feet. I was small at the time so I never had the chanch to see the results. Worth a try . Hope one of the solutions work out for you. Good luck

-- Mary (marwel@microserve.net), April 15, 2001.

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