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Rattlesnakes!!

15K views 36 replies 20 participants last post by  chickentheef 
#1 ·
Anything short of a 12 guage shot gun that will irradicate these pesky snakes??? It's getting warmer and they will be out soon. I live in the country and killed 3 last year that were right out side the door of our house. What I am concerned about is that I have to go under the crawlspace of the home to do some electrical and although I am not afraid of non-poisonous snakes, I don't relish the idea of getting bitten by a dangerous rattlesnake.

Has anyone heard about controlling snakes by the use of pigs?????? I don't think I could fit one under the house though!!!!:laughing:
 
#4 ·
yes, pigs will sometimes eat them. But I was watching "Dirty Jobs" and Mike Rowe had helped a company eraticate cock roaches and snakes. They used moth balls. I had called them and they said yes, snakes do not like moth balls. Try it, what do you have to lose?
 
#5 ·
I would do a bit of research. It may be part of a myth but I remember hearing about some problem with the fumes from the mothballs.

from one website.
For either of these chemicals to be effective, they need to be placed with the clothing in a sealed container so the fumes can build up and kill the moths. In a sealed atmosphere like this, the fumes are not harmful to people because they are contained. The main threat would occur when opening the containers, or from wearing clothes immediately after opening (especially a problem for infants). A solution is to open the containers outside and let the clothes hang and air out for a day before wearing.
We all seem to have an aunt whose entire house smells like moth balls, and we have all walked in to public restrooms where the smell of paradichlorobenzene is nearly overpowering. Are these fumes healthy? The answer is "probably not." If you read the chemical descriptions in the links, you will find that neither of these chemicals is particularly good for people to breathe on a regular basis. Airing out clothes is a way to limit exposure.
here is a lot more reading than I have time to do but seems germane.

http://npic.orst.edu/hottopic/mothball/health.html
 
#8 ·
Lemongrass!

We have no shortage of poisonous snakes in our yard here in Thailand (red keelbacks, banded kraits, cobras!)

What locals do, and what we've started doing, is to plant lemongrass around the edges of the yard as a barrier. Apparently snakes don't like it. It isn't 100% effective, but does cut down on unpleasant encounters. Plus it smells good and you can cook with the lemongrass!
 
#9 ·
There's supposed to be some kind of mesh fence you can put up that they can't climb over, but it's not cheap. Some large dogs will kill them, but sometimes the dog gets killed. Some people say cats keep them away because the cats dispose of all the small rodents so the snakes aren't interested in your place.

I hope that helps,
:)
 
#11 ·
Just my thought

I had trouble with small rodents under my deck, I put mothballs in a plastic coffee jar with holes in it's lid. I havent seen anymore rodents and or signs.

I was in North Carolina visiting, and this conversation came up about snakes coming up from the water area to the house , The owner told me they start by clearing the area around their home ( so as not to trap them at the house ) and then start from the house toward the water with moth ball dust what ever that is? Anyway they claim it worked for them against I believe he said " copper head snakes"

Deck Hand
 
#12 ·
Thanks for all of your suggestions. I run an animal rescue and rehab center here and have to be careful of toxic treatments. I have pot belly pigs that may do the trick!! If not...I will try the mothballs.
 
#13 ·
OK
This is what I do for a living, 25 years in pest and nuisance wildlife control

The company on Dirty Jobs was a joke and easily the least professional group I have ever seen

There is a product called Dr Ts Snake Away that is effective on rattlesnakes
Moth balls are not that good for one thing because they melt in rain and dew
Snake Away is a different formulation of the same chemical that will last about 6 months
 
#14 ·
Ocoee-

Thank you soooooo much for the info. Where do I get the Dr. T's Snake Away formula????

Thanks to everyone else for your good intentions.....it sounds like we have a solution by Ocoee!!!!!
 
#18 · (Edited by Moderator)
Hey Cyndi,

There's a couple products on market that repels snakes: Snake-A-way and Snake Out. Snake out is a "Green product" that is very effective. Snakes "taste" the surrounding air, and the special ingredients in Snake Out are very unpleasant to them. When they come in contact with this product in the air, an escape reaction is triggered and they slither away pronto. Snake-A-Way works in much the same manner except that it is not "Green".

Hope this helps.
 
#21 ·
Bugzilla out --[/quote]

Thanks, Mr. Zilla.
I didn't know about protection until I tried to pull a snake out from under the slab of a neighbor's house, on request of the house's female residents.
I had this 5' guy stretched out like a rope - for a creature without hands or feet he sure could hang on!
Later I found out I should have taken more care with this (he/she got away, anyway).

You might want to see my album pic, "snake in a cake dish." This one was strolling around my living room. Might be a ghost snake, might be a milk snake.
 
#22 ·
Thanks for all the info guys. We did get 2 pigs and haven't seen any snakes since. Of any kind!!! Doesn't mean they aren't there...but so far....so good. I will keep the chemicals in mind if anything changes. cyndi
 
#26 ·
Snakes give me da shakes!
Bugzilla out --
One snake I picked up wasted no time in wrapping his body around my forearm.
This was very strange behavior for a snake.

Turns out he wanted leverage to pull his head out from my fist.
And he got leverage, and now the tables were turned, and I had this slightly peeved snake on my arm looking for the best place to plant his fangs.
(See, and I was giving the guy a break by not squeezing his neck too tightly. No good deed goes unpunished).

Too bad I don't have a video of that day.
:laughing:
 
#30 ·
Elaborate, meaning where/how do you keep the pigs? Do they have to be penned, if so, that will be of no help in my situation. I find it hard to believe that a pig could eat a rattlesnake as I'm sure it would be bit several times while trying and would probably back away after the first bite.
 
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