Almost stepped on a rattlesnake this morning while going out to feed the birds. Made a deal with it and poked it on its' way. Almost stepped on a second bigger rattlesnake and the deal was off for this one. Put the .357 into service as deadly force for the first time. Two shots - dead snake. The most unnerving part was
the fact that the body slithered slowly 3 feet away from the head after it was severed. Cut off the rattles for my BFF Rachel (I owe her a birthday present). I would rather not to have to do this on a regular basis so I am moving the bird feeding station further away from the house as the seed might be attracting a small rodent population - thus the diamond backs. Live and let live - but not so close to my house...
Finally opened up a new can of paint and went to town with a brush. Finished all the cutting in after 4 hours. Now all that's left is roller work. Benita spent the day admiring my work and the shadow of her longhorns.
Almost stepped on a rattlesnake this morning while going out to feed the birds. Made a deal with it and poked it on its' way. Almost stepped on a second bigger rattlesnake and the deal was off for this one. Put the .357 into service as deadly force for the first time. Two shots - dead snake. The most unnerving part was 
the fact that the body slithered slowly 3 feet away from the head after it was severed. Cut off the rattles for my BFF Rachel (I owe her a birthday present). I would rather not to have to do this on a regular basis so I am moving the bird feeding station further away from the house as the seed might be attracting a small rodent population - thus the diamond backs. Live and let live - but not so close to my house... 
Finally opened up a new can of paint and went to town with a brush. Finished all the cutting in after 4 hours. Now all that's left is roller work. Benita spent the day admiring my work and the shadow of her longhorns. 
12 comments:
OMG!!!!! You can probably hear me howlering all the way to Terlingua...
That snake is HUGE, glad you killed it. Are you sure Rachel is still going to consider you her best friend after you send her the rattles?
That is the only drawback for me of living in the desert or out in the country...those pesky snakes. This one looks like she could swallow my cat!!!
John,
I've had similar problems, here are my solutions:
All seeds and feeds are stored in metal garbage cans, with the lids tied down to discourage the Javelina from having breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Mothballs are spread to discourage both mice and rattlesnakes.
Diatomaceous Earth (DE) food grade is spread to discourage scorpions and beetles, fleas, ticks and other critters that are an annoyance that the mice and other critters also feed off of.
Both of my dogs are also on slither patrol constantly, barking when good or bad snakes are about, the barking sends a vibration that causes the snakes to exit stage left quickly.
In this way I can keep such critters away from my immediate environment and the wildlife can live in peace somewhere else.
GiniV
GiniV got it right,,here I use mothballs, then discovered Snak-a-way and it works,,same chemicals, Doesn't kill them just runs them off. but nothing works as well as a shotgun!! Beats the heck out of that pistol every time!!!
Ben,
I have a 20 ga shotgun that works when the other stuff fails and a long machete if they are too close to something that might explode if I use the shotgun (i.e. propane tanks, gas cans). I've only had to use the shotgun and the machete once in the 3 years I've been out here.
GiniV
John
I'm a part time neighbor and discovered your blog through Texas Country Reporter. Haven't had a snake problem (yet) but give me time. More rocks than sand up here (Fort Davis) and what a difference 5000 feet makes. June is hot but 15-20 degrees cooler than Austin.
Neil
http://www.lonestarbunker.com
Wish I could figer out how to edit or add to my own post on here, but,
The most effective thing you can do to prevent snakes is to make the place NOT attractive to them. No mice around, no hiding places for them, no water, etc etc, the other option of kill the deadly things. They are NOT pets or cute cuddly critters.
Would snakes search for cover under those containers ?
The outer perimeter of the containers will be sealed with concrete to keep critters out.
My preference is a .22 rifle with rat shot....or whatever you call those little transparent topped bullets with tiny blue bb's inside. You can shoot the head with little danger of ricochet or penetration of objects you don't want penetrated. (I have put tiny holes in a wooden porch post doing this...but that's the worst that has happened.) I only kill them if they're very close to the house. And it doesn't happen very often...but when it does....
P.S. Meant to say first that I have really enjoyed reading of your adventures.
Please use caution! Moth balls are extremely toxic to dogs (and probably cats)!
http://www.i-love-dogs.com/dogsarticles/10-Things-In-Your-Home-That-Can-Kill-Your-Dog.html
Hi John, Just saw you on Texas Country Reporter. I wish we had seen it before last weekend when we were in the Study Butte area. We made a run through Big Bend National & State. Then along the beautiful river road between Lajitas and Presidio. Great time. Take care out there.
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