Baby rattlers :)

[DalyTek]

As much as I love snakes, I'm with tonemonster on this one.
I catch rattlesnakes and know how to handle them, but I will not bring them into my house lol.
I actually try to move them away from homes where they could put people--kids and pets in danger, not to mention putting themselves at risk!

[john.w.lawson]

I am all about live and let live, but having rattlers in my house is not going to happen any time soon. seriously now.... arent you worroed about them biting you? I mean they will eventually grow to maturity, and can get loose in the house.

I've been bitten in the past by a WDB and a blacktail, its been years ago.I keep full grown adult snakes for short times(if they will eat frozen mice or rat)I have locking cages designed for them.The babies are in locking tupperware and they are not that great of escape artist, like say a cobra or just your average milk snake.And I've had both Its not for everyone!!!I limit my chances of getting bitten by using good tools and the experience of dealing with them since I was about 6 years old.But shit still happens!! And yes it is prairie rattlesnake DalyTek, its the only hot snake in this area.I enjoy finding all sorts though. I found two 6-7 foot western coachwhips this year...Talk about havin to run to catch something

[john.w.lawson]

This is what one looks like when it really wants to hit ya



this is what a snake cage for hot should look like.Notice the unlocked lock lol



Bout a 6 foot bull snake I removed from the road, most if not all snakes I mess with other then take pic's of would end up ran over.



Adult rattler I kept for a short time.



This is it right before it would have been ran down by a tractor.



As for the babies they would have been dead that day two were already ran down.

[DalyTek]

Very nice. What area do you live in John? I'm glad to find someone who shares the passion for these beauties.

I catch huge coachwhips all the time. Those snakes have the nastiest temper of any snakes I have dealt with! I don't think I've ever caught one didn't try (and many succeed!) to bite me repeatedly! They're fast as hell!

I've caught several bullsnakes (we have the Sonoran Gopher Snake variety out here) My experience has been varied with them. Almost all the young ones have been extremely friendly. About half the adults have been pretty aggressive, but for the most part they have been fair and warned me with loud hisses before biting. I found one that was on the side of the road that topped out and just under 7 feet! Unfortunately, it was hit by a car and died withing minutes of the discovery. (That one I might have kept, as it was HUGE and the coloration was awesome. Most of the yellow was gone, and it was pretty much gray. Imagine looking at a black-and-white photo of a gopher snake and that's what he looked like. Stunning!

There are 2 local snakes that I really want to find. One is the Western Hognose, and the other is the Glossy Snake. As I mentioned earlier, I have found only 1 glossy snake and it was DOA. That broke my heart.

I've also had a run-in with a Gila Monster under my house, and those are damn aggressive in their own right. That's a story all its own right there....

[nateb]

After closely examining this thread.....









Fuck ya'll

[john.w.lawson]

western hoggy doin' his gig (playing dead)



Not so dead same hoggy





People have a right to their opinion, hell I have opinions!! I don't think over weight people should play X-box or eat bacon That's a recipe for disaster Lol.I live in KS.

[DalyTek]

That looks like a good sized hognose there, John. What's their temperament like from your experiences?

[john.w.lawson]

They flatten out and hiss and strike with no clear direction, then play dead.If you go back to the first page thats a big western hoggy!!I kept it for a week and it hissed everytime I opened the container..But I'm sure like most wild caught it would calm down after awhile?They are protected here..But I seem to see them often.

[Scooter]

I saw a hognose once when I was about 8-9. Thought it was a cobra, freaked everyone out. I was also working in the area Steve Irwin was in when he stood over a bunch rattle snakes in their den on the WV/VA border. That was a cool episode. He really flipped out when he realized where he was standing. Black snakes and copperheads are everywhere here, rattlers generally keep away from inhabited areas.

[john.w.lawson]

Thats cool Scooter, Timber rattlers are one of my favorites...You could never tail a prairie rattler (hold it by the tail) You would be bitten quick.But I love the timbers and canebrakes, Had a few years ago when I lived in IN.And yes hoggys do hood up freaking children out, they are a rear fanged snakes and have a very mild venom..Not harmful to people. Well,maybe if your toad like

[DalyTek]

We have a relatively small rear-fanged snake out here that I have encountered quite a few times called a Night Snake.
They have the most mild mannered personality of any snake I have encountered. I have caught many, many of them and not one has ever even attempted to bite.
They actually seem to enjoy being held! They will wrap around fingers, coil up inside your palm...even my kids like to hold them because they are so mellow.
Just like you decribed the hognose, they are rear fanged with a mild venom that is harmless to humans.

We also have it's relative, the Lyre Snake, but I have only found one of those in the wild and it got away before I could handle it. It did attempt to strike before it escaped so I know it wasn't as friendly as its cousin. And we supposedly have the Western Hognose out here as well, but they have eluded me so far!

[Norton]

Do they taste like chicken?

[DalyTek]

Actually, from what people have told me, yes....but very salty.

[Twitch]

We dont see many snakes around here, at least I dont. Wish we did. Im all for a good harmless snake. We have plenty of toads and tree frogs though, for which I leave parts of my yard unkempt. The toads love the tall grass. Keeps them out of the main part of my yard when I mow, and gives them an excuse to hang around. I love reptiles. Ive had a few casualties this year with the mower and the weed whip, but theres so many, I just cant sweep my yard of all of them before hand. Also found a spot in my neighbors yard thats a toad trap and theres 10 or 12 in there that dried up and died, its sad, Ill have to watch that area next summer and make sure that ones that end up there get freed.

The tree frogs are kind of rare though, only caught two this year. One about dime sized and then one about a week ago the size of a half dollar. We have clicker frogs(dont remember the species name, but they make a loud clicking sound) in a retention pond down the street. Those fuckers are deafening when youre right over top of them and DAMN hard to see even when youre within inches of them, but Ive managed to catch them too.

[Rsmacker]

Nice to see Mr Lawson is keeping up his snake charming activities, I'm fascinated by the creatures. Like I said the other week, just be careful, it seems that familiarity breeds contempt.

Round here the only snake to be wary of is the one-eyed spitting trouser variety. Mine.