Bad Snakes and Snake Lovers

Hi all!

I have a quick question for all you snake lovers! But first, allow me to give you the reason why I'm asking this question. I live in Texas, and one of the first things my dad taught me as a young girl was the difference between "good snakes" and "bad snakes". Good snakes were, of course, those that are non-venomous, such as King Snakes. Bad snakes, we those like Cottonmouths and the infamous Diamondback Rattlesnakes.

Because of their abundance and their deadly venom, I have been taught to kill these "bad" snakes whenever I come across them. At the risk of being severely bashed and having evil thoughts sent my way, I wanted to know what snake lovers thought about this.

Now, I know they are good for keeping down rodent populations, and some people would say I should just bag it up and take it far away and release it. There are two problems with this line of thinking: 1) I do not know how to handle snakes, and I am not willing to handle poisonous ones at my own risk 2) The snake will either come right back, or cause problems for (and potentially harm) someone else. People have tried these "catch and release" methods with sparrows, but they usually come right back.

So, are there any snakes you consider to be bad snakes? Would you ever kill these wild snakes, especially knowing they are not in any way endangered or protected? Or does your love of snakes make this seem absolutely unacceptable and abhorrent?

I would definitely not label myself as a snake lover but I do recognize the difference between good and bad snakes. I think one of the most important things to remember as well is that there are responsible ways to handle each category, venomous and non-venomous.

I consider any venomous snake to be a bad snake. If it is venomous and on my property, it is dead. Bottom line. Risking my dogs and my own safety is not worth trying to catch and release a species that will kill me if I do not reach a hospital in time.

Just an FYI, there are several species of Diamonbacks that are constantly being relocated to protected habitats. After speaking with a few men who have participated in rattlesnake roundups, it seems that the hunters are very careful to identify the snakes in this species that are protected thus only catching the particular species that are over populating the area.

I have had experiences with Cottonmouths (Water Moccasins) and Copperheads that have been a little to close for comfort. Yes, they ended up dead. The problem is that these snakes will come back if they have found food, water and a suitable habitat. Breeding season for a Cottonmouth is a nightmare.

Sometimes your own yard can be a perfect habitat for a venomous snake. Whether you live in the country or the city YOU have to control the rodents, not the venomous snakes! I would rather have a mouse on the porch any day as opposed to a venomous snake. Venomous snakes are not good for rodent control because they are just too dangerous. King snakes would be. Anyway, this truly helps by cutting off the food supply. We can't do anything about ponds and lakes but we can keep grass short and open holes filled around such water sources. Tall grass is a prime place for snakes to hide and open holes near a water source is an idea place for them to nest. Gravel has been my choice to fill holes.

King snakes are our friends and an enemy to other snakes. I had a king snake on my property for about 5-6 years. He/She was almost 6 feet long and very shy. He lived near the pond (water and food source). They will eat other snakes, turtle eggs, frogs, lizards and rodents. They are also immune to venomous snake bites. Never kill a King and learn to know the difference.

I have a love of animals of all sorts. No, I don't love snakes but I sure appreciated seeing that King snake outside sunning every morning. I knew he was taking care of various problems. He was rounding up the turtle eggs and killing everything that a dangerous snake would want to eat..including the dangerous snakes.

A fast way to identify a venomous snake is usually by their triangular head and slitted eyes. A King snakes head would look more like your thumb. No triangular shape. Learn about the snakes in your area and memorize the difference.

I see no reason at all to hurt any snake unless you are in real danger. In fact, I am not into the good or bad snake theory. Just because a snake is venomous, it doesn't make it bad. Most snake species will not attack you unless they feel threatened first. Don't bother a snake and just go around it while keep good distance if you see one in the wild or on the sidewalk or such. If a snake has got into your house, you can always call the police and let them to deal with it. Some areas have Animal Police who are good at removing such animals from private property in a professional way before releasing them miles away from your place.

(02-04-2014 01:16 AM)Ram Wrote:  I see no reason at all to hurt any snake unless you are in real danger. In fact, I am not into the good or bad snake theory. Just because a snake is venomous, it doesn't make it bad. Most snake species will not attack you unless they feel threatened first. Don't bother a snake and just go around it while keep good distance if you see one in the wild or on the sidewalk or such. If a snake has got into your house, you can always call the police and let them to deal with it. Some areas have Animal Police who are good at removing such animals from private property in a professional way before releasing them miles away from your place.

I agree with you Ram, to a degree except when it comes to a Cottonmouth/Water Moccasin.

I think it really depends on where you live and whether or not it is breeding season for the snake. A Cottonmouth becomes incredibly aggressive during mating season and are very territorial snakes. If a den is disturbed, they will stand their ground. Many times people can't help but to disturb a den.

A quick example is that I own a house in Mississippi on 4 acres with a 1/2 acre pond. My property backs up more than 1000 acres of protected land.
I have seen more Cottonmouth than I can possibly count and have yet to see one that isn't highly aggressive. When they decide that your property is their home, they will protect it fiercely.

While mowing the grass on a riding mower, I had one that stood up roughly 12 inches from the ground. I reversed the mower and it chased it. Another decided to take up on my back porch. I walked out, tried to shoo it away and it came after me, striking as it quickly approached, forcing me to stand on lawn furniture and call a neighbor for help. Neither of these instances happened during mating season. I can give several more examples of the Cottonmouth being terribly aggressive. After owning my property for more than 10 years, I have never had a Cottonmouth retreat. It has been the exact opposite.

On the other hand my confrontations with Copperheads have indeed been the opposite. They have all scurried away with caution. I know that I do not have to worry as much about this species and therefore do not bother with trying to eliminate them.

I believe that considering that I was in the deep south and had a perfect habitat for snakes that my situation is more on the extreme end of the spectrum. I have come far too close to stepping on them, getting bit or my son and dogs getting bit. There was unfortunately no choice but to kill these snakes to keep the population down as much as possible. We couldn't live with the risk of them breeding and calling my property "home."

My preference would be to just let them live their little lives and I would live mine but that just wasn't possible where I lived. They were a constant worry and danger to everyone. The only snake control out in the country was a gun or maybe a shovel or garden hoe. Animal Control wouldn't touch them and in the area in which I lived in, was so over populated with Cottonmouth, that it was encourage by the ranger to shoot them. Unfortunate but true.

You are right though, and I totally agree that in nature...leave them alone. But putting me, my son and dogs in danger...it will have to be killed.

Once again, it truly depends on the area in which you live. Thank goodness Cottonmouths are not city slickers

I say this an an obvious snake lover, but really an overall animal lover and a lover of nature. There is no reason to kill any animal in a natural environment. I live in, and grew up in, Florida, camping, canoeing, wandering through woods and bayous, regularly. I think you may have a bit of an exaggerated view on the cottonmouths, but I do understand. They are the only native US snake that is truly aggressive on occasion.

The thing you have to realize with almost all snake species is, to them, you are a huge, dangerous, potential predator. And they have all evolved various defensive strategies. The key with cottonmouths, is to leave them alone, lol. Back away very slowly, and they will go away. For whatever reasons, they have evolved to stand their ground against almost all predators, which is unusual with snakes. If you can get out of their line of sight (And range of heat sensing, as they are pit vipers), they will try to get away from you as well. As long as there is any movement, they consider "threatening", they can continue this behavior.

As far as breeding is concerned, they don't really have "dens". They are ovoviviparous, meaning they give birth to live young, so the process takes much longer than with most species that are oviparous (egg laying), and the females are very vulnerable during this whole time. Which combined with the natural instinct to stand their ground, can make the whole thing worse.

I would have to say though, from what it sounds like, unless you completely strip your property, and most of the area around it, you are always going to have them. And I would bet you have more than you've ever seen. You can think your seeing the same ones, but these animals can move pretty good distances. I've found them miles from any water source in pine flats in FL. While they do love water, they can be just as comfortable on dry land for extended periods.

I would never kill any snakes, especially venomous ones. Most venomous snake bites occur when someone either picks the snake up, or tries to kill the snake. These animals definitely do play an important role in the ecosystem. I don't think it's right to kill them just because they end up in your backyard. I certainly don't think it's a good idea either. If you find a venomous snake in your yard, the best thing you can do, is call a professional snake catcher to remove the animal. Never try to kill one of these snakes.