Mothballs will work untill the first heavy rain sulphur will go away even faster and it will kill grass.Both are poison so be careful.There's no good way that I know of to keep them out kill them when you see them.But they are just looking for something to eat.Good luck Jim

Move to Ireland, or just be careful (and loud) where you step and snakes won't bother you.

Snakes are going to show up periodically. Your best bet in controlling them is to eliminate or control their habitat. Look at their food sources. If you have a place mice like, clean it up. If you have water where frogs are likely, then you will attract a different kind of snake. Geese are great snake control around ponds. Outside cats kill alot of snakes.

Last year I found the one snake that I would have most liked to see, a speckled king, dead in my yard. They eat snakes,mice, lizards and anything else they can get. Unfortunately, it had eaten something and got caught in the bird netting I'd placed around my blueberries. But that also told me I had a habitat that would support snakes. Where there is one, there are likely to be others. I'm in the process now of clearing some brush that has been allowed to grow wild in the back of my lot. I've had discussions with one of my neighbors about a rat problenm that started up from his leaving food around his kennel. Not completely his fault,-I had the places for the rats to live and he had the food source. But you get the idea.

Thanks for the replies about the snakes. I want to try the moth balls and the sulphur, even if it is a temporary thing. We live out in a rual area. I know we have mice because the cat brings them to the porch sometimes. There is plenty here for snakes to eat. There is a small pond located on our property also. The mice like to eat the feed we have for our goats and our donkey. In fact, we did find a copperhead last year in our feed shed. I might have to move to Ireland after all. Thanks again. Judy Rose

Snake-A-Way is a get rich scheme for the people who make the stuff. There isn't any evidence that the stuff actually works. The company's own website has tests that say it works, but independent tests haven't found it to work any better or worse than nothing at all. Ditto mothballs, sulfur, lime and other popular folk remedies.

The only way to minimize the number of snakes in an area is to reduce their habitat and prey. Killing or removing snakes will eliminate an individual snake but others will fill the habitat niche soon after. As long as you have feed that mice like, snakes will be a reality. Probably better a few copperheads to keep an eye out for than Hanta virus and a surplus of mice but of course seeing a copperhead in one's yard can still be disconcerting for most people.

If you decide Snake-A-Way is worth a try, I would still watch where you step when around the feed shed and other suitable snake habitat, since the product's effectiveness is not guaranteed.

I used to own a Pest control company and we bought snake away for an apartment complex that had them coming into the apartments, not copperheads mind you but snakes in general.

When we were putting it out it had a sulfur smell to it so you will be better off just getting the sulfur. It will be more cost effective.

The only problem is that if the snakes are inside the sulfur barrier they will stay inside of the barrier. It does not kill them it just irritates them. At least that is what I was told by the Mississippi Extension Service.

Hope it helps.
John

Try a cat. Despite me having a doberman, my daughter brought home a cat about 4 years ago. I hated cats and so did the dog. The dog and I hated the cat but the cat managed to stay out of our way. But, about three years ago, I have had a new outlook on the cat. Within a two month period, the cat killed two small water mochassins and a garden snake!

muscovies seem to either eat them or drive them away.
Me, I agree with walking loudly and stuff and I kind of like reptiles of all sorts. Muscovies are ugly distortions on ducks, but they do seem to bother snakes. You may want to try them.

Where I grew up there weren't any poisonous snakes, so I haven't developed the perfectly reasonable fear of snakes a lot of people have (I am reasonably respectful I hope!) But when I was pretty young I watched a garter snake in our yard eating slugs, and decided I'd rather have snakes. And I really dislike rats and mice and snakes will clean them up nicely too. My mother grew up in Montana, and one time she said her baby brother was apparently being entertained by the family cat, who was jumping up and down near him; they went to investigate and discovered the cat had killed a large rattler. Like cats too. Wish they'd leave the birds alone tho'.

Best thing for snakes.

Unfortunately cats don't discriminate very well - mine have brought copperheads, moccasins and garden snakes. They're usually still living, though (here Mama, here's FRESH food!) and I can kill the bad and throw back the good ;-)

sea ya
tami
now if I can just teach 'em to kill squirrels ;-)

The way I see it, don't even attempt to get rid of your snakes unless you are willing to get a cat. If no snakes or cat, mice and voles will eat your garden and invade you. The snakes are there for the food - and you must have good eating at your place. Most snakes will usually feel your footsteps and be gone before you can see them. I have noticed for many years and in many locales, that mocassins and copperheads do not - they seem almost territorial and agressive at times. For example, my son as a toddler was inches from a mocassin bite on a park trail in Florida. I had to actually hit the snake with a stick to make him leave the trail so we could pass. We ran into a ranger later, told him, and he said - oh yeah, that snake always hangs out in that spot. Our bassett was bitten by a copperhead in the backyard and almost died. Nonpoinsonous snakes are good - mice and voles are nasty.

Thanks for all the input on snakes. I still haven't gone to the store to get sulpur and moth balls. We have one cat, and one dog. Our dog, Termite, usually barks and lowers her head when there is a snake. Last year she had a coral snake in her mouth and was just shaking it back and forth. I knew she was dead. Somehow it didn't bite her. I am thinking about getting another cat. Looks like I will have to live with the snakes. They just scare me so much. I have such a time seeing them in the grass. Thanks again for all the info, it is appreciated. Judy Rose

Not being all that far from LA now that I live here in northcentral TX, I thought I'd take a peek at your message board, and came across this thread.

Are y'all interested in the thoughts of a career wildlife biologist with a lot of experience with various snakes in various places?

- It's not the venomous snake you see that poses an unknown danger to you and yours, it's the one you don't see. Diligently watch where you put your body parts - which also means don't put a body part where you can't see (for example, step onto a log rather than over it) - and your chance of a bite drops down to virtually nil. Teach your children to act likewise, or if they're too young to behave responsibly, closely supervise them when they are in areas where snakes might be expected to be particularly abundant. Dogs can be taught to avoid venomous snakes, too; there are routinely "snake-breaking" clinics held by hunt clubs across the southern U.S., and they are very effective for teaching dogs to watch out for themselves.

- The exception to the above rule is when you see a venomous snake and mess around with it. The great majority of bites in the U.S. actually occur because the person bitten was in some way trying to do something with or to the snake, such as trying to kill or move it. Give any venomous snake you see a reasonably wide berth and you will be perfectly safe - so long as you remember to watch where you put your body parts as you leave the spot.

- Even in the case of the venomous snake that you don't see, the danger is extremely slight. Snakes generally try to avoid detection entirely, so they often lie still even when very closely approached. When they believe they have been detected, their next line of defense is to escape if they perceive this as a possibility, or to threaten if not. They're not going to come after you (despite what you might have heard from story-tellers), and they're almost never going to genuinely try to bite without some pretty obvious provocation (such as being stepped on) - and even then the odds are greatly in your favor. Indeed, I recall reading a study in which a biologist deliberately stepped next to and even on rattlesnakes and gauged their responses; only a very small percentage attempted to bite even under such direct physical assault.

- If you live reasonably close to reasonably good wildlife habitat in parts of the country where venomous snakes reside, you're going to have at least the occasional venomous snake appear in your yard. Removing brush, keeping potential rodent food sources well contained, etc. will decrease the likelihood, but nothing you can do that isn't outright devastating to the environment will eliminate it. Cats allowed to roam free are devastating to the environment, all right, but still don't eliminate the possibility of a venomous snake turning up in your yard. For every snake that you - or your cat - sees there are many more that pass through unseen, after all. If you don't believe this, ask an experienced snake hunter to check your place out sometime. I can't tell you how many specimens I have found in places where the land owners have told me "Sure, go ahead and look if you want to waste your time! I've lived here for 30 years and have never seen a one, and besides, I've got cats!"

And that leads us back to my recommendation that you diligently watch where you put your body parts... There simply is no better solution to the possibility of venomous snakebite.

I hope folks don't think I'm trying to scare them, because my intent is just the opposite. People can and do live alongside all kinds of wildlife, most definitely including venomous snakes, with no problems whatsover. I myself have lived and spent considerable time afield in such snakey places as AZ, FL and even the rainforest in northeastern Guatemala (where I took machete in hand and bushwhacked several days a week for nearly three years while doing wildlife studies there). Much of that time I spent actually seeking snakes. And yet I've never been bitten, and the one or two times I know of when I came even close were my own stupid fault - and still ended well.

Gerry

I need help as soon as someone can give it to me. I live where there are many copperheads. I have two Jack Russell terriors. 'Bonnie and Clyde'. I have been to two major super stores this evening to try to purchase sulfur. They did not sell it. I was shown Snake-a-Way but it said that it was dangerous for domesticated animals. My Vet said that if the dogs took a lick of sulfur it would not kill them and that they probably would would not do it again. I don't know what to do but I have got to do something. We do not have rats. Water bugs are outside I am sure. We don't feed the birds any longer. I understand everything that people are saying but it is not helping my situation. These dogs have got to get out and get a lot of exercise every day. I am having the bushes against the house in the back yard uprooted this week.
DO MOTH BALLS AND SULFUR work? I would put it outside the privacy fence. Not where the dogs could get to it.

I used mothballs but i put them in old pantyhose in my plants ....

Jack Russell terriers are some of the best snake killers around. They are just too energetic for an old dude like me.

In Judy's case I would suggest a Rat Terrier. No kidding! If you live around an owner with Rat Terriers used for squirrel hunting, beg them for a puppy.

These incredible little dogs are practically incapable of leaving a snake alive! I have seen many Rat Terriers and Beagles, from many hunters, that were bitten by Rattlers and Cottenmouths. Of all these bitten dogs, only one died, And, she was a beatutiful small female that was recovering from a very tough delivery of a litter, only the day before. I took her for a gentile walk, she spotted, smelled, or heard a very large Rattler about 40 yards away, and took off, by the time I got there, the snake was dead and she was bitten on the side of her face. She lasted 4 days, even in her weakened condition.

Rat Terriers are the most lovable dogs, smart beyond belief, strong, and totally fearless. They will kill mice and rats continuously for great fun. Squirrels are right up their with mice and rats. Rat Terriers wake up happy and, stay that way all day. They live vigorous, and long healthy lives.

But, all the sporting dogs I've been exposed to, seem to take snake bites with no permanent damage.

Rats and mice are the lure. They can be discouraged. Prevent the rats and mice from getting to the animals food. Keep your animal feed enclosed. Feed only as much as they will eat in an hour or so. We started keeping our feed in thick plastic drums with tops that would latch down. Clean up areas where they might live.

Our rat and mouse population plummeted and the snake problem went away. The Rat Terriers came years later.

Thanks again, for all the input. We are thinking seriously of getting a Rat Terrier. My cousin has two cats she needs to get rid of and is planning on bringing them to us. That will give us three cats. If we do get the Rat Terrier, then we will have two dogs. Our present dog, Termite, is good at finding some snakes. Maybe with all these animals we can get a handle on these varmits. I don't want to kill them I just want them to go somewhere else in the woods. Bonnier I hope some of these ideas will help. We plan on getting trash cans for our feed so that will not invite the mice, etc. Thanks again. Hope everyone has a nice day.

Judy

Do you have a pond? If you have tadpoles, frogs, and toads, you are calling the dinner bell for snakes. Please don't kill the nonpoisonous ones, or you will create a mouse/vole/mole/rat problem as well. My Jack Russell terrier makes short work of copperheads - however he also got her "sister" the bassett hound involved and bitten on the snout. She didn't die, but her usual droopy bassett hound face turned 100X droopier for a couple of days.

I was actually bitten by a large copperhead. It was bad. I had permenant damage to my ankle - it still looks swollen and always will. I spent three days in the hospital. It is rare enough that many doctors and nurses don't have a clue how to treat it. They brought the pediatrician in to see me, because he was the only doctor who had experience with snake bites. My whole leg was swollen to three times its normal size and let me tell you, it was very very painful.

Good luck. I sure hope you don't have a similar experience. Copperheads can be aggressive at certain times of the year, and they are hard to see against a gravel road.

Take care

We had a Jack Russell/Rat Terrier pet killed 8/05 by a snake, we assume a rattlesnake. She was dead when I got home from work and our larger border collie was near death. We had to take her to the animal hospital and get anti venom to save her. Our family has lived here for 15 years and this was our first experience with a snake coming into our backyard surrounded by a chain link fence. All that is in our yard is one tree and clean cut grass. We do live in the country, and I will try sulfur this year. Our family was devastated by the loss of our pet, and cannot go through that again. We don't have a cat either, but I may consider this.

lol mallards also shoo them away! ;) I have lots of mallards and have had for like 4 summers now and I haven't seen any snakes around here in years now. THANK GOODNESS CUZ I am scared of them! Well I take that back, there was a large one out in the pond last summer that I saw but he's gone now so I don't know if they scared him off or if the ducks killed it or what. But I've heard ducks will eat them. ?????

King snakes eat other snakes so we encourage them to live around us. When we first moved into our house we killed 3 water mocciasons but left the king snakes alone. (how scary is that? 3!!). We now have a family of king snakes in our yard. I found two babies last week and find them very cute. They became less scary to me when I found out that they will eat poisonous snakes. They are very calm pleasant snakes to encounter in the yard.

I just saw a snake in my yard while pulling weeds along the fence line. I live in N.E. Louisiana. This snake is neon blue striped. I think the other stripe was cream colored ( since I am afraid of snakes) I didn't stay around to look that close. What is this snake. I asked my son-in-law (who is an outdoorsman) and he had no idea.