View Full Version : Bought a snake infested property in Southern Louisiana
hotbiggun42
05-11-22, 21:19
Property hasn’t been lived on for over 5 years. The pond has a cotton mouth nest in it and the mobile home has signs of snakes living in it. I’ve been shooting the snakes in the pond but what do I do about the snakes in the home?
Damn it’s hot down here!
Light it all on fire, and rebuild!!LOL
arbninftry
05-11-22, 22:04
That sucks. You will have to get rid of any habitat. Lots of slash and burn, but your in Lower LA, so its a snake pit anyway. As far as the house, depends if you want to salvage it or not. If its a trailer you can get someone to move it out and then fire bomb any nests. If it is an elevated house, you could be screwed. Any holes in duct work will screw you, good luck getting a Heating and Air guy to crawl under it. I kind of had the same problem with copperheads, got to where I was killing 6+ a day in a very hot July. Cut and burned any habitat in a 100 yards. It helped, but I still killed some that wondered in the short grass where I could see them. You really have to keep the grass short, burn any habitat, and NEVER walk outside in flip flops. CCI shot works, but you have to have a gun that will cycle them. I went through a couple pistols until I found one that would cycle. My first thought was a J frame, but the shock broke all the capsules in the cylinders and the shot went every where and jammed it up. My USP 9 ended up being my every day carry while working outside. Now I know some one is going to say shotgun but one handing a zero turn with a shotgun on your lap is not really feasible. Shotgun was always handy, but the pistol was always on my hip. So do you run to the house/truck to get the shotgun and potentially lose track of the snake or do you just eliminate it then and there with a pistol.
Hope this helps.
Diamondback
05-11-22, 22:19
Forwarded to a friend who lives down your way, if she has any advice I'll pass it along.
LowSpeed_HighDrag
05-11-22, 23:01
Gives me the freakin' willies just reading that.
Cottonmouths all DIE, mostly needlessly aggressive snake I've ever dealt with. I was actually canoeing near Markham Park and one of the damn things left the bank to swim out to my canoe just to be an ass.
If you have the opportunity to differentiate, several of them will likely be water bandits (non venomous but similar looking) and you might be able to sell them to pet stores. Weirdo people will pay lots of of money to own a snake. I "think" when I was a kid we got $25 per snake and the pet shop sold them for $75.
The mobile home probably needs to be burned down. If it has snakes, it definitely has roaches and roaches freak me out more than snakes.
titsonritz
05-12-22, 03:53
F' those things. Brush hog the whole place down to nothing, steel shot the shit out of the pond and burn the mobile home.
titsonritz
05-12-22, 03:55
Cottonmouths all DIE, mostly needlessly aggressive snake I've ever dealt with. I was actually canoeing near Markham Park and one of the damn things left the bank to swim out to my canoe just to be an ass.
They will do that, territorial and aggressive POS.
Straight Shooter
05-12-22, 04:26
Ain't no way, no amount of money, would make spend one night in that trailer. Had an old bachelor uncle that had one come up thru the commode...while he was on it.
He taped that thing shut, sat bricks on it, was never used again. We could hear them in the walls and see them them outside.
I flat quit going over there. He wound up gettin a roach in his ear, that's a long sad, sick story tho. Ain't worth it bro. You'll have one slide in bed with you one dark night, and you'll never be right again.
Cottonmouths all DIE, mostly needlessly aggressive snake I've ever dealt with. I was actually canoeing near Markham Park and one of the damn things left the bank to swim out to my canoe just to be an ass.
Black Mambas I think are the most angry aggressive snake in the world. They also can go 176 feet per second, 12 mph. They are scary nasty.
I would call in a napalm strike on the property, I really don't like snakes.
You’ve bought my childhood home, lol. They’re not as aggressive as people give them credit for, but I certainly wouldn’t want to sleep somewhere infested by them. I’d be more concerned for my dog than myself. Personally, I’d kill them on sight, and attempt to figure out their food source. Unfortunately I don’t have any genuinely good advice, so I’m throwing spaghetti at the wall below.
From the internet: “Cottonmouths are opportunistic feeders and are known to consume a variety of aquatic and terrestrial prey, including amphibians, lizards, snakes (including smaller cottonmouths), small turtles, baby alligators, mammals, birds, and especially fish.” Read “mammals” as rodents. I’d start there on eliminating their food source. Many of the small critters snakes eat grow up to be critters you can eat. Rabbits, nutria, frogs, fish. I don’t know how big your property is or what the non-snake critter situation is. Rats and mice should be eliminated. Since they are edible by snakes throughout their lifecycle, they are a very convenient source of food for land-going snakes.
I’d consider removing that mobile home. If its been abandoned for some time its probably not doing so well. Nature reclaims quickly down there.
Tame the brush and grass. As you kill the snakes, remember that they can bite you when dead. Juveniles are the most dangerous.
A university biologist or a pest control company (do they mess with snakes?) might have better advice than a gun forum. Two have emails hotlinked on this page: https://www.lsu.edu/mns/collections/herpetology.php Snake repellent exists also, but I have no idea if it works.
If you have neighbors nearby, don’t be a stranger. They may know something about this. Where are you from, anyway?
Diamondback
05-12-22, 07:09
My friend's advice:
"Best advice I have is have a very big bonfire and bring lots of marshmallows with very long sticks...cottonmouths are aggressive and watch carefully for any attempted escapees. Shoot to kill then skin 'em and make belts and stuff. He might try contacting locally operating "pest" control. Won't likely be cheap but cheaper than the hospital stay for snakebite...if you live"
My advise is to sell the property if you can't get along with the snakes. You will never kill them all!
Diamondback
05-12-22, 07:48
Addendum from my friend when I mentioned this shoulda been disclosed by owner or realtor before sale: "Sellers are required by law to disclose all the known bad crap in any property purchase with a mortgage of any kind backed by the fed. If he paid cash he's stuck with it all at his expense likely. Though he might find a friendly judge for a lawsuit to recover at least some cost of "cleanup"."
titsonritz
05-12-22, 07:54
Black Mambas I think are the most angry aggressive snake in the world. They also can go 176 feet per second, 12 mph. They are scary nasty.
I would call in a napalm strike on the property, I really don't like snakes.
But at least they aren't in this country.
Diamondback
05-12-22, 08:00
But at least they aren't in this country.
Don't say that too loud, next thing you know Captain Pedopants will declare them "economic migrants"...
Call the local fire department and have them burn down the trailer for training purposes. they will do it for free. Then have the remains buried. Like others have said bush hog everything around and then mow grass etc and keep it short. Keep everything around the lake/pond or whatever as short as possible. You will always have snakes there so be prepared to kill them as needed.
That sucks. You will have to get rid of any habitat. Lots of slash and burn, but your in Lower LA, so its a snake pit anyway. As far as the house, depends if you want to salvage it or not. If its a trailer you can get someone to move it out and then fire bomb any nests. If it is an elevated house, you could be screwed. Any holes in duct work will screw you, good luck getting a Heating and Air guy to crawl under it. I kind of had the same problem with copperheads, got to where I was killing 6+ a day in a very hot July. Cut and burned any habitat in a 100 yards. It helped, but I still killed some that wondered in the short grass where I could see them. You really have to keep the grass short, burn any habitat, and NEVER walk outside in flip flops. CCI shot works, but you have to have a gun that will cycle them. I went through a couple pistols until I found one that would cycle. My first thought was a J frame, but the shock broke all the capsules in the cylinders and the shot went every where and jammed it up. My USP 9 ended up being my every day carry while working outside. Now I know some one is going to say shotgun but one handing a zero turn with a shotgun on your lap is not really feasible. Shotgun was always handy, but the pistol was always on my hip. So do you run to the house/truck to get the shotgun and potentially lose track of the snake or do you just eliminate it then and there with a pistol.
Hope this helps.
A pistol with ratshot, something like a Taurus Judge. Best anti-snake gun I have found.
RE: mambas, we had one get away from a local collector within the past year. Never found it. Crazy how many exotic venomous snakes in my area with collectors. I am certain we're not the only area where this is happening.
On a deployment we had a Marine bit by a mamba. Got right sick, but he was OK in the end.
Locally the worse thing are copperheads. They are pretty prevalent. Down east we find water moccasins and worse, eastern diamondbacks (biggest venomous snake in the US). We're supposed to have coral snakes, but I have never seen one in NC outside of a museum or zoo.
Burn it with fire, then nuke it from orbit. Only way to be sure.
I've never positively seen a Coral Snake here in NC either. I did see either a Coral or King Snake slide under a rock while turkey hunting a while back. Didn't try to go dig it up to see what it really was though. I also see a lot of Timber Rattlers. Not as big as Easterns but they can get fairly large also.
I've never positively seen a Coral Snake here in NC either. I did see either a Coral or King Snake slide under a rock while turkey hunting a while back. Didn't try to go dig it up to see what it really was though. I also see a lot of Timber Rattlers. Not as big as Easterns but they can get fairly large also.
Oh, yeah, the timber rattlers/cannebrakes. I have seen a couple small ones but that's it. And they scurried away.
My friend's advice:
"Best advice I have is have a very big bonfire and bring lots of marshmallows with very long sticks...cottonmouths are aggressive and watch carefully for any attempted escapees. Shoot to kill then skin 'em and make belts and stuff. He might try contacting locally operating "pest" control. Won't likely be cheap but cheaper than the hospital stay for snakebite...if you live"
Again, they’re not super aggressive. Thats a flat-out myth. Don’t take it from me, take it from the experts that teach this in Ranger School, or from ER or EMS statistics. For example, look at Berkeley County SC. Its the size of Rhode Island, contains a big ass lake, lots of swamp, and a national forest, named for Francis Marion…. The Swamp Fox. It has lots of snakes, such as cottommouths and copperheads. In other words, it looks a lot like South Louisiana. And a pile of people moving there by the day, encroaching on habitat. Their EMS is very busy, like 100 calls a day. In a 4 year period, they had exactly two calls for snakebites, both intox young males that were effing with the snake. For the first of those two, it had been so long that the training chief wasn’t aware that the closest hospital had Crofab. And it had been so long for that ER, that the charge nurse had to go check that they actually had it. The second of those two patients is suspected of having hallucinated the experience and had no bite marks, and the big ass snake that was supposed to be in his truck, wasn’t. He had been enjoying some drugs.
Snakebites are a fairly uncommon injury in the southeast, and are frequently precipitated by Darwin-y stuff. Ask an ER doc how often he treats them.
As for “if you live”, it is extremely uncommon to die from an adult cottonmouth bite, even in very rural areas.
I am NOT claiming that they aren’t dangerous, but as DG23 pointed out, you’ll have to learn to coexist with some amount of them, as I have my entire life.
IIRC Victory Pond at Ft. Benning had a Water Moccasin infestment a number of years ago (may have been decades). I believe they electrified the pond and that did the trick.....for a while anyway.
I detest snakes. Like they make my skin crawl. I'll kill the fvck out of them if I think they are a threat. Black snake the other day my wife was "REEEE!!!"ing about, I told her just let him go his own way and if he gets froggy (like some can do) I'll grab the 20-gauge H&R inside the kitchen door and make quick work of him.
So where does the U.S. Army send an 18yo Infantry private who is terrified of snakes? Why to Panama of course! Bushmasters and Fer De Lances were the venomous ones, Boas weren't but still creeped me out. One time at JOTC we were on aggressor detail and waiting for a deuce-and-a-half to pick us up. One of our guys was about to sit on a stump when someone yelled "Stop!" The top of the stump had a little concave dip in it and sitting there was a baby Fer De Lance. He would've sat right on it! About five of us took our blank adaptors off of our M16's and stood in a circle around the stump, pointing the muzzles about foot from the hissing little bastard. On the count of three we all pulled the trigger at the same time and vaporized it.
We get a metric crap-load of copperhead bites, especially in the spring and fall. It's usually because they (Jake no-shoulders) are laying in a woodpile and gets startled kind of thing, not because of it being aggressive. The rest of the bites are what 1168 said, Darwin-type stuff. Copperhead deaths are stuff of legend and myth. Never heard of one, never saw one. In fact, the 'cure' (Cro-Fab) is usually worse than the bite (and expensive as hell).
@ABNAK, yeah, I have seen some of those (fer-de-lance comes to mind, and some other South American rattlesnake). I have seen cobras, a mamba (the one that bit the Marine, another Maine killed it), but cannot think of any other exotic, venomous snakes I know I have seen. But you know how people are: to a lot of people EVERY snake is a copperrattlemoccasin.
Me, I like snakes. I inherited it. My dad was roommates with the reptile curator of the NC Museum of Natural Science before he married my mom and he would go with him to collect specimens. That guy, Bill Palmer, has written several books about snakes and reptiles, mentioning my dad in the acknowledgments.
I hate, nay, loathe, scorpions and the centipede/millipede, and spiders that I cannot see (if I can see them and kill them or steer clear, I am OK. But I still hate them).
Again, they’re not super aggressive. Thats a flat-out myth. Don’t take it from me, take it from the experts that teach this in Ranger School, or from ER or EMS statistics. For example, look at Berkeley County SC. Its the size of Rhode Island, contains a big ass lake, lots of swamp, and a national forest, named for Francis Marion…. The Swamp Fox. It has lots of snakes, such as cottommouths and copperheads. In other words, it looks a lot like South Louisiana. And a pile of people moving there by the day, encroaching on habitat. Their EMS is very busy, like 100 calls a day. In a 4 year period, they had exactly two calls for snakebites, both intox young males that were effing with the snake. For the first of those two, it had been so long that the training chief wasn’t aware that the closest hospital had Crofab. And it had been so long for that ER, that the charge nurse had to go check that they actually had it. The second of those two patients is suspected of having hallucinated the experience and had no bite marks, and the big ass snake that was supposed to be in his truck, wasn’t. He had been enjoying some drugs.
I hate Cro-Fab. Expensive as hell, a lot of nasty side effects, often worse than the bite itself. A lot of docs like to give it just because.
P2Vaircrewman
05-12-22, 10:03
Property hasn’t been lived on for over 5 years. The pond has a cotton mouth nest in it and the mobile home has signs of snakes living in it. I’ve been shooting the snakes in the pond but what do I do about the snakes in the home?
Damn it’s hot down here!
I am in South LA too, where about you bought, north or south of I-10, east or west of the Mississippi river. There are three seasons here, summer is 11 months 14 days long, spring and fall are 7 days each.
I’m in the bayous south of Houma. Snakes are basically yard ornaments down here. The cottonmouths are some stubborn little demons. They will not move as you near them. Little copper heads generally get boot stomped with my Lacrosse Alpha Burleys. CCI 22lr rat shot from my single six is very effective on cotton mouths.
But with all that said, I’d gladly share my bed with all the snakes if it meant getting rid of those darn wasp, deerflys, gnats, mosquitoes, hogs, armadillos, and spiders.
Edited to add fire ants.
I hate Cro-Fab. Expensive as hell, a lot of nasty side effects, often worse than the bite itself. A lot of docs like to give it just because. I can’t say that I disagree, but it is a factor some medics consider when choosing a facility. Many bites are “dry”, anyway, and Crofab would be silly.
We get a metric crap-load of copperhead bites, especially in the spring and fall. It's usually because they (Jake no-shoulders) are laying in a woodpile and gets startled kind of thing, not because of it being aggressive. The rest of the bites are what 1168 said, Darwin-type stuff. Copperhead deaths are stuff of legend and myth. Never heard of one, never saw one. In fact, the 'cure' (Cro-Fab) is usually worse than the bite (and expensive as hell).
Snip
But you know how people are: to a lot of people EVERY snake is a copperrattlemoccasin.
You see so many snakebites, relatively, because NC is the snakebite capitol of the US, leading with 19 per 100,000 humans. Wake County has the most in the state.
28% of snakebite victims are intox. 2/3 are under 30. Over 80% are male. These are the same dudes that flip their Camaro at 0300, statistically, or get shot robbing a liquor store. Roughly half of bites occur on the hands.
A paper on Louisiana snakebites analyzed bites from 1907 to 1946 and found that 0.6% of victims died, but none of the deaths they looked at had occurred in the previous 25years. Emergency medical care during that time period was not near the level of today. In fact, the authors noted serious complications from inappropriate care.
Today, of the thousands of annual snakebite victims in the US, 5-7 die per year. I think thats around 0.1%, or on the order of. Most are in the southwest, and almost none are in the southeast. Thats ~0.1% of somewhere near ~0.01% of people that get bit.
You are spot on about the average person’s ability to identify a snake.
FromMyColdDeadHand
05-12-22, 11:58
Burn it with fire, then nuke it from orbit. Only way to be sure.
Saw the title, came here to post this:
https://youtu.be/aCbfMkh940Q
When I moved to Denver, like in the city, I asked the realtor if there were rattlesnakes around. That's when I knew how good of a BSer they were, because they treated my irrational fear as a legitimate question....
When I go to the big range out on the plains, when I go to hang targets, I take one of those green plastic tomato 'spikes' and tap it like a blind man. I look like an absolute retard, but IDGAF.
I can’t say that I disagree, but it is a factor some medics consider when choosing a facility. Many bites are “dry”, anyway, and Crofab would be silly.
NC is the snakebite capitol of the US, leading with 19 per 100,000 humans. Wake County has the most in the state.
28% of snakebite victims are intox. 2/3 are under 30. Over 80% are male. These are the same dudes that flip their Camaro at 0300, statistically, or get shot robbing a liquor store.
A paper on Louisiana snakebites analyzed bites from 1907 to 1946 and found that 0.6% of victims died, but none of the deaths they looked at had occurred in the previous 25years. Emergency medical care during that time period was not near the level of today. In fact, the authors noted serious complications from inappropriate care.
Today, of the thousands of annual snakebite victims in the US, 5-7 die per year. Most are in the southwest, and almost none are in the southeast.
You are spot on about the average person’s ability to identify a snake.
Wake County?? Damn. Knock me over with a feather. That is a hugely urban area, and growing by the day. Which is why bites are occurring: humans are effing with the habitat in name of growth. That makes sense.
I get your point about Cro-Fab. A lot of smaller hospitals don't carry it because it's so expensive. We have 5 EDs within 40 miles that have it. If I was a medic, or patient, I would want to go to a hospital with it. That also makes sense. Around here, you will be at a hospital that has it.
I’ll say it since no one else has. What’d you expect buying property in South Louisiana? First time outside the city? Welcome to the sticks.
Now since I’m finished with my picking at you. I have a standing shoot on sight order for Cottonmouths and Armadillos. See if you can’t find a King Snake supplier. That’s the best medicine for Cottonmouths. Introduce a few of those and watch the venomous snakes disappear.
Saw the title, came here to post this:
https://youtu.be/aCbfMkh940Q
When I moved to Denver, like in the city, I asked the realtor if there were rattlesnakes around. That's when I knew how good of a BSer they were, because they treated my irrational fear as a legitimate question....
When I go to the big range out on the plains, when I go to hang targets, I take one of those green plastic tomato 'spikes' and tap it like a blind man. I look like an absolute retard, but IDGAF.
I knew someone would get the reference. ;)
hotbiggun42
05-12-22, 14:06
Addendum from my friend when I mentioned this shoulda been disclosed by owner or realtor before sale: "Sellers are required by law to disclose all the known bad crap in any property purchase with a mortgage of any kind backed by the fed. If he paid cash he's stuck with it all at his expense likely. Though he might find a friendly judge for a lawsuit to recover at least some cost of "cleanup"."
Paid cash, im here to stay so the snakes will need to move! I might lose my wife though.
Paid cash, im here to stay so the snakes will need to move! I might lose my wife though.
Good for you! Stick to your guns (figuratively and literally). Show those critters (snakes, not your wife) who's boss! (I guess you can show her, too....if you dare)
hotbiggun42
05-12-22, 14:12
I like the king snake idea. I’ve been here about 3 months and I knew country living would be different.
I really like it here, never seen so much wildlife and birds. Currently I’m living in a fifth wheel near a crawfish pond and at night the frogs and insects are loud I mean really loud. It’s a different world from Washington state.
hotbiggun42
05-12-22, 14:16
I am in South LA too, where about you bought, north or south of I-10, east or west of the Mississippi river. There are three seasons here, summer is 11 months 14 days long, spring and fall are 7 days each.
A small town called Kaplan, actually about 5 miles out of town but the address is Kaplan. The heat is worse than the snakes and everyone tells me it isn’t hot yet.
I do try to spend very little time indoors so I can get use to this weather.
hotbiggun42
05-12-22, 14:26
You’ve bought my childhood home, lol. They’re not as aggressive as people give them credit for, but I certainly wouldn’t want to sleep somewhere infested by them. I’d be more concerned for my dog than myself. Personally, I’d kill them on sight, and attempt to figure out their food source. Unfortunately I don’t have any genuinely good advice, so I’m throwing spaghetti at the wall below.
From the internet: “Cottonmouths are opportunistic feeders and are known to consume a variety of aquatic and terrestrial prey, including amphibians, lizards, snakes (including smaller cottonmouths), small turtles, baby alligators, mammals, birds, and especially fish.” Read “mammals” as rodents. I’d start there on eliminating their food source. Many of the small critters snakes eat grow up to be critters you can eat. Rabbits, nutria, frogs, fish. I don’t know how big your property is or what the non-snake critter situation is. Rats and mice should be eliminated. Since they are edible by snakes throughout their lifecycle, they are a very convenient source of food for land-going snakes.
I’d consider removing that mobile home. If its been abandoned for some time its probably not doing so well. Nature reclaims quickly down there.
Tame the brush and grass. As you kill the snakes, remember that they can bite you when dead. Juveniles are the most dangerous.
A university biologist or a pest control company (do they mess with snakes?) might have better advice than a gun forum. Two have emails hotlinked on this page: https://www.lsu.edu/mns/collections/herpetology.php Snake repellent exists also, but I have no idea if it works.
If you have neighbors nearby, don’t be a stranger. They may know something about this. Where are you from, anyway?
I’m from Washington State, I lived here as a child but haven’t been back for 40 something years.
My pond is loaded with goggleye, frogs, turtles and of course snakes. I’m in the process of removing a dock that collapsed ( where the snakes live) that should help.
To be honest though, I trust the cottonmouth more than the snakes running Washington state. I loved the state but hated the politics.
hotbiggun42
05-12-22, 14:31
I can’t say that I disagree, but it is a factor some medics consider when choosing a facility. Many bites are “dry”, anyway, and Crofab would be silly.
You are spot on about the average person’s ability to identify a snake.
True that, everyone tells me there are other snakes that look like water moccasins, I guess it the shape of the head. Problem is, I ain’t getting that close to them.
True that, everyone tells me there are other snakes that look like water moccasins, I guess it the shape of the head. Problem is, I ain’t getting that close to them.
Northern water snake, plain bellied water snake, diamondback water snake...all resemble cottonmouths mostly from colors and habitats. The whole triangle head-shape thing, I'd ignore that. Like you said, you won't get that close to identify them by head shape.
Black Mambas I think are the most angry aggressive snake in the world. They also can go 176 feet per second, 12 mph. They are scary nasty.
I would call in a napalm strike on the property, I really don't like snakes.
Thankfully none in Florida. Also why I don't go to Africa. More concentrated venomous shit than Australia.
I've never positively seen a Coral Snake here in NC either. I did see either a Coral or King Snake slide under a rock while turkey hunting a while back. Didn't try to go dig it up to see what it really was though. I also see a lot of Timber Rattlers. Not as big as Easterns but they can get fairly large also.
I was out snake hunting one time as a kid, flipped over a piece of plywood and found a nest of corals. Mentally ran "red touch yellow" in my head and realized it was time to leave. Thankfully they aren't terribly aggressive and cannot unlock a jaw to strike a flat surface which is good because they are probably the most toxic snake in the south.
titsonritz
05-12-22, 16:31
I was out snake hunting one time as a kid, flipped over a piece of plywood and found a nest of corals. Mentally ran "red touch yellow" in my head and realized it was time to leave. Thankfully they aren't terribly aggressive and cannot unlock a jaw to strike a flat surface which is good because they are probably the most toxic snake in the south.
Similar to a Copperhead, they will typically freeze when approached and only strike when physical contact is made upon them.
I was out snake hunting one time as a kid, flipped over a piece of plywood and found a nest of corals. Mentally ran "red touch yellow" in my head and realized it was time to leave. Thankfully they aren't terribly aggressive and cannot unlock a jaw to strike a flat surface which is good because they are probably the most toxic snake in the south.
Coral snakes are shy and docile. It takes a lot to piss them off so much they bite.
Coral snakes are shy and docile. It takes a lot to piss them off so much they bite.
Thankfully. I was probably 14 years old but I was smart enough to just start walking backwards.
The challenge was always water moccasin vs water bandit, they look a lot alike but usually water bandits run and water moccasins fight. I always used a snake stick and there were maybe two times I pinned one down behind the neck, got a real close look and realized NOPE...WRONG SNAKE.
The real money was in yellow and red rat snakes simply because they did the best in captivity.
P2Vaircrewman
05-12-22, 17:57
A small town called Kaplan, actually about 5 miles out of town but the address is Kaplan. The heat is worse than the snakes and everyone tells me it isn’t hot yet.
I do try to spend very little time indoors so I can get use to this weather.
My wife has a nephew who lives there. I am in LaPlace, between New Orleans and Baton Rouge.
I have a shooting range on family property that is classified as low woodlands. Mostly high interspersed with small waterfilled low spots. I see cottonmouths occasionally. My house is about 2 miles away on high land with a small ditch on one side. Several years ago I opened the back patio door to go out side and one was laying across the threshold. I almost stepped over it, it never moved. I got a shovel and rendered it inoperable. We do have a fair number of king snakes around.
My wife has a nephew who lives there. I am in LaPlace, between New Orleans and Baton Rouge.
Small world. When I moved out of the swamp, it was to LaPlace.
Thankfully none in Florida. Also why I don't go to Africa. More concentrated venomous shit than Australia.
I went into my bed room one night and saw on the bed, a small white worm looking thing. I was going to brush it off on the floor and step on it.
Buttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt. all of a sudden my brain engaged, so I went to get an African to tell me what to do with it.
The guy enters the room and see this little thing and starts going crazy, yelling and flapping his arms. Got him calmed down enough to understand if you even touch it you will die.
So I got a dust pan and a few pages of news paper, brushed it into the dust pan and then walked like my life dependent on walking smooth, dumped it in the toilet and flushed. Took the newspaper out side and burned it.
Pulled the sheet off the bed and bumped it in the wash barrel. Then went to sleep wondering if it had a mate!
I went into my bed room one night and saw on the bed, a small white worm looking thing. I was going to brush it off on the floor and step on it.
Buttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt. all of a sudden my brain engaged, so I went to get an African to tell me what to do with it.
The guy enters the room and see this little thing and starts going crazy, yelling and flapping his arms. Got him calmed down enough to understand if you even touch it you will die.
So I got a dust pan and a few pages of news paper, brushed it into the dust pan and then walked like my life dependent on walking smooth, dumped it in the toilet and flushed. Took the newspaper out side and burned it.
Pulled the sheet off the bed and bumped it in the wash barrel. Then went to sleep wondering if it had a mate!
Last time I was there, I walk out of a bar, and 2 dudes I knew are hanging around an upside down pint glass. I was like “dafuq are y’all doing?” They look up with this expression, and I knew. Under the glass was this badass scorpion. One of the few that are really dangerous. Y’know, big tail and stinger, tiny claws. This particular species is unique in being able to sting sideways. And it was pissed. These assholes were going to try to have a scorpion fight, and once they caught one, they were having a hard time figuring out the next step.
The wildlife in Africa are not to be effed with. The snakes, scorpions, and mammals are seriously dangerous. Also, Benadryl is not adequate sedation to take a selfie with a baboon.
The wildlife in Africa are not to be effed with. The snakes, scorpions, and mammals are seriously dangerous. Also, Benadryl is not adequate sedation to take a selfie with a baboon.
Nope. Uh uh, not at all.
Inkslinger
05-12-22, 18:56
I’ll throw a funny snake story into the mix. Snakes don’t bother me in the least. As a little kid I was always getting yelled at for bringing them into the house.
Well, when I was a senior in high school I needed to add classes to my schedule because they wouldn’t let me just take the required classes and fill in the empty time with study hall. We had an Ag department in my high school were you could learn everything from milking a cow to environmental science, so I signed up.
In the main classroom there was a 6’ long black snake in an aquarium that I would always get out and torment people with. Occasionally they would bring kids from the local elementary schools to tour the department. During one of these tours I removed the snake and allowed it to coil around my neck. As the teacher was showing the kids around I come running through screaming and flailing my arms and proceed to drop on the ground flopping. About 30 little kids began screaming and scattering all over the facility. The teacher, choking back a mix of anger and amusement said, “I don’t know if I should laugh or give you detention.” He couldn’t have been too mad, he gave me passes to get out of study hall to do taxidermy on a squirrel! [emoji2371]
1_click_off
05-12-22, 19:04
Small world. When I moved out of the swamp, it was to LaPlace.
Real small, I got a ferty at Mabiles today while passing through. I wish they would get some oysters in!!!
If there is enough of us around….. weekend snake shoot???
Real small, I got a ferty at Mabiles today while passing through. I wish they would get some oysters in!!!
If there is enough of us around….. weekend snake shoot???
BRO! I used to get a shrimp po’ boy or a half muff there regularly. I’m happy to hear they’re still open. That joint is iconic like Airline Motors.
I shoot the heck out of snakes… I could use an excuse to make a trip. Eat some good food, grab some boudin, andouille, and tasso to take back.
Edit: for oysters, check Peavine, or the Halfway House.
FromMyColdDeadHand
05-12-22, 19:34
My bayou buddy was telling me about how when the floods go down you have to be really careful because the water moccasins get left up in trees and sit there and will strike down at you. I’ll take bears in mountain lions any day of the week over a snake. There’s honor in fighting a bear or mountain lion and even losing. No glory fighting a snake.
Wife took a pic of this little guy while picking blackberries last week
https://i.imgur.com/mFBWdfR.jpg
hotbiggun42
05-12-22, 19:45
My bayou buddy was telling me about how when the floods go down you have to be really careful because the water moccasins get left up in trees and sit there and will strike down at you. I’ll take bears in mountain lions any day of the week over a snake. There’s honor in fighting a bear or mountain lion and even losing. No glory fighting a snake.
Last week it rained about 8” in 3-4 hours here there was 4” of standing water when the rain stopped, I didn’t see any snakes but spiders 1000s of spiders walking on top the water towards our camper. It was a creepy sight.
This is quite the place to live, walking on the grass and hearing water with each step birds everywhere. We drove my brother Polaris into a swamp are and seen a old dead tree with what had to be 30 buzzards sitting on the branches.
I haven’t seen any large gators yet but 6’-7’ footers are very common and turtles everywhere. It’s like a freaking zoo.
hotbiggun42
05-12-22, 19:50
Wife took a pic of this little guy while picking blackberries last week
[IMG]/IMG]
Damn, I have a bunch of blackberries on my property. Funny the first snake I seen I thought who put a rubber snake by the porch.
1_click_off
05-12-22, 20:08
Watch out for the floating fire ants. If the water level comes up, the ants form a cluster that floats on the water with all the eggs and Queen inside. The kids and I used to get the pump up sprayer and fill it with soapy water. Go ant hunting in the side by side. You get close and shoot a stream of soapy water on them and the surface tension breaks and they sink. God help you if you are walking in water and bump into one of those floating mines.
And you heard right, it isn’t hot or muggy yet.
My dad used to tell a story about how when he was a kid he and his buddies would catch snakes and take them to Old Man Carter in town. Old Man Carter could take a snake and pop it like a whip, causing the snake's head to pop off. One day one of my dad's buddies said that if Old Man Carter could do then he could do it too, and proceeded to grab a snake by the tail and cock back. Well, when he cocked back he had his hand too close to his head and the snake wrapped around the kid's neck. My dad said the kid ran for a mile before they could catch him.
P2Vaircrewman
05-12-22, 21:36
Real small, I got a ferty at Mabiles today while passing through. I wish they would get some oysters in!!!
If there is enough of us around….. weekend snake shoot???
But then you would probably have to take out a loan.
P2Vaircrewman
05-12-22, 21:39
BRO! I used to get a shrimp po’ boy or a half muff there regularly. I’m happy to hear they’re still open. That joint is iconic like Airline Motors.
I shoot the heck out of snakes… I could use an excuse to make a trip. Eat some good food, grab some boudin, andouille, and tasso to take back.
Edit: for oysters, check Peavine, or the Halfway House.
Half way house has been closed since Katrina, Peavine is iffy, Kenner Seafood is the place.
1_click_off
05-12-22, 21:56
Half way house has been closed since Katrina, Peavine is iffy, Kenner Seafood is the place.
I am going to check your dive threshold with this one… you remember Bully’s? Not Bull’s corner but Bully’s on 51. Thursday nights you could get two dozen raw and two fish bowls of beer for about $9.
Think Mabiles was still $11.99 for a full poboy.
I remember taking a ride on the motorcycle and going to Peavine’s with the wife and that is when all those huge black grasshopper looking things were crossing 51. I thought I was going to have to carry her from the parking lot to the restaurant. Think it was called the crab trap at that time.
WHY ?
There wasn't a lot of entertainment in Bowie, Texas during the late 1940's.
I went into my bed room one night and saw on the bed, a small white worm looking thing. I was going to brush it off on the floor and step on it.
Buttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt. all of a sudden my brain engaged, so I went to get an African to tell me what to do with it.
The guy enters the room and see this little thing and starts going crazy, yelling and flapping his arms. Got him calmed down enough to understand if you even touch it you will die.
So I got a dust pan and a few pages of news paper, brushed it into the dust pan and then walked like my life dependent on walking smooth, dumped it in the toilet and flushed. Took the newspaper out side and burned it.
Pulled the sheet off the bed and bumped it in the wash barrel. Then went to sleep wondering if it had a mate!
I probably don't want to know, but what was it?
1_click_off
05-12-22, 22:42
When I first moved down here there was a snake in the rafters of the little pole barn/shed. My dad tells me it is a python and I should catch it to sell it to make some money and walks off. I am looking at the snake and just not convinced it is something that should just be picked up. It was real docile and wasn’t too worried about me poking at it with a stick. So I go inside to Google it in my reptile encyclopedia books and sure enough… copperhead. It wasn’t as docile when I first came back out with the new knowledge and a shovel. Thanks dad….
I went into my bed room one night and saw on the bed, a small white worm looking thing. I was going to brush it off on the floor and step on it.
Buttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt. all of a sudden my brain engaged, so I went to get an African to tell me what to do with it.
The guy enters the room and see this little thing and starts going crazy, yelling and flapping his arms. Got him calmed down enough to understand if you even touch it you will die.
So I got a dust pan and a few pages of news paper, brushed it into the dust pan and then walked like my life dependent on walking smooth, dumped it in the toilet and flushed. Took the newspaper out side and burned it.
Pulled the sheet off the bed and bumped it in the wash barrel. Then went to sleep wondering if it had a mate!
What was it?
Damn, I have a bunch of blackberries on my property. Funny the first snake I seen I thought who put a rubber snake by the porch. Mow them or find a goat to eat them. They are snake magnets. I think the snakes lurk in them to snag complacent birds, or maybe for cover/concealment. Or, do as I do and don’t sweat the snakes too hard but be vigilant. Keep an eye on your dog, too. At least you don’t have to worry about bears or hippies when you pick berries.
When you look at that pic, look how that no shoulders-having dude is kinda tilting up at you. That says “intent” to eff you up if you stick your hand out. Assume that he’s the real deal.
Half way house has been closed since Katrina, Peavine is iffy, Kenner Seafood is the place. well, shit.
I am going to check your dive threshold with this one… you remember Bully’s? Not Bull’s corner but Bully’s on 51. Thursday nights you could get two dozen raw and two fish bowls of beer for about $9.
. I do remember Bully’s. Great dive. They still around? Edit: damn, I forgot that it was the same place as Halfway House, so I guess its gone.
What was it?
I tried to find out but never could match it with anything.
But if the locals said it would kill you, then I am not taking chances
P2Vaircrewman
05-13-22, 09:12
I am going to check your dive threshold with this one… you remember Bully’s? Not Bull’s corner but Bully’s on 51. Thursday nights you could get two dozen raw and two fish bowls of beer for about $9.
Think Mabiles was still $11.99 for a full poboy.
I remember taking a ride on the motorcycle and going to Peavine’s with the wife and that is when all those huge black grasshopper looking things were crossing 51. I thought I was going to have to carry her from the parking lot to the restaurant. Think it was called the crab trap at that time.
Bully Maurin owned the Halfway house. Bully's Halfway House was the whole name. The Crab Trap is also a victim of Katrina. The only business presently at Peavine is Peavine Landing resturant.
FromMyColdDeadHand
05-13-22, 13:51
When I first moved down here there was a snake in the rafters of the little pole barn/shed. My dad tells me it is a python and I should catch it to sell it to make some money and walks off. I am looking at the snake and just not convinced it is something that should just be picked up. It was real docile and wasn’t too worried about me poking at it with a stick. So I go inside to Google it in my reptile encyclopedia books and sure enough… copperhead. It wasn’t as docile when I first came back out with the new knowledge and a shovel. Thanks dad….
Coming from Southern Ohio, I thought copperheads were small snakes. Don’t think I ever saw one, but the pics always made it look like they were under a couple of feet, usually less. To be confused with a Python…..
RioGrandeGreen
05-13-22, 14:35
Was down in Katrina and got a call of a drunk guy harassing contractors from up north. So we show up and we're talking to the contractor and notice he was in flip flops in knee hi grass that had water moccasins. He started explaining what was going on. I quickly stopped him and told him about the snakes, he hi stepped it to his truck like a running back. I'm glad I was wearing Danner Matterhorns 10 inch boots. F those snakes.
We live on some property just Northwest of Atlanta in the suburbs. Not long after we moved there I found out that my sister-in-law at the time grew up in this house. I asked her why did they move and she said her mom got tired of the snakes!
We have found that it helps to be snake tolerant here, It's almost a daily occurrence. King snakes and grey rat snakes around the house and on the fence line, black racers in the pasture. Brown snakes in the pool filter. Some fairly aggressive water snakes around the pond that look just like cottonmouth.
And copperheads everywhere. In the ivy, on the driveway, down next to the pond, and in the planters immediately surrounding the house.
Dog has been bit. Neighbor has been bit walking on his driveway.
I was up on the roof blowing off leaves when the kids said there was a copperhead. I told him to stay away from it.
They said dad, it's really big. I said where is it, in the pasture?
They said no, right at the corner of the house. I peeked over and it was the biggest Copperhead I've ever seen. Had one of the boys grab a shotgun and I shot its head off.
Even missing a couple of inches it was right at 5 ft. My son wanted the skin so I skinned it and got the typical dead snake with no head striking thing that will weird you out.
I took a picture of it on top of the fallen leaves in the planter and you can barely see it. I use it as a "spot the copperhead" test on Facebook and similar.
If they are out in the woods I'll let them live, but if they're up near the house, especially in the planters they have to go.
There is some cat pee smelling crystal product that you can sprinkle in planters and similar that supposedly keeps snakes away.
There does appear to be a correlation between seeing king snakes up near the house and copperheads. There is a huge king snake that lives in a hole at the end of our pool patio and we like having him there for that reason.
The water snakes are excellent cottonmouth mimics, and when I would cut with the tractor near their hole where they fished over the pond, they would rear up and fall strike at the tractor tire! Would scare the fool out of me!
The gray rats like to come into the house and will do so through any opening. If you leave the door open to the basement or something they will come in, especially in the fall when it starts getting cooler. We have learned not to leave the basement doors open very long even if moving stuff in and out.
Coyotes do seem to predate quite a bit on the snakes, and since we have a very active pack right now they are keeping both snakes and feral cats down. And unfortunately turkeys, but that comes with a territory.
When I was a kid in KY, we were walking through a field and stepped into a nest of snakes. Somebody yelled snakes, like good KY boys everyone leaned down to grab one. We let a few go in the mall where we were heraded then I took my "Gardner" snake home. My dad said, nice snake son, sit it down, its a cotton mouth. LOL
Shit is dangerous
PB
What's funny is here in Georgia everyone will tell you that cottonmouths are not found north of the fall line. Columbus to Macon to Augusta. Yet all the other snakes are found, so I can't imagine that cottonmouths wouldn't have the similar range as the water snakes they live side by side with.
Likewise, cottonmouths are very close cousins to copperheads. Similar shapes, and some cottonmouths have a similar pattern although it's much darker and fainter.
We are covered up in Copperheads so I have to assume there's cottonmouths as well.
We see a lot of baby copperheads dead on the driveway. They're easy to spot is they have a neon yellow tail when they're very small.
Pigs.
You need to invest in some pigs. Or at least, so I hear, they are good at keeping snake populations at bay.
Pigs.
You need to invest in some pigs. Or at least, so I hear, they are good at keeping snake populations at bay.
My understanding is that there has been an increase in the number of rattle snake bites here in Texas because feral hogs have eaten the ones that are quick to rattle and leaving behind those that tend not to give a warning.
Pigs.
You need to invest in some pigs. Or at least, so I hear, they are good at keeping snake populations at bay.
I had some pigs at one time. Killed a few moccasins around their pin. Though it was next to the bayou.
Seriously though I’ve been playing in the swamps and bayous down here all my life and I’ve never(that I’m aware of) been struck at by any snake unless I was holding it. I also don’t know anyone personally that has ever been bitten. Maybe we were just trained from the womb on how to live with them lol.
Edit to add funny story about pigs
We flooded for Gustav or Ike not sure exactly which one. Dam levee broke and water came up in a matter of minutes. We bailed and left the pigs to fend for themselves. When we came back home in a boat they were swimming in our yard towards my neighbor who still had about 2 inches of water in his house. I went to corral them and they ran inside his house. I had to wrestle one down in his living room and the wife had the other in his kitchen. We laughed and drank a beer after. They have since moved and we still laugh about that anytime we see each other.
I had some pigs at one time. Killed a few moccasins around their pin. Though it was next to the bayou.
Seriously though I’ve been playing in the swamps and bayous down here all my life and I’ve never(that I’m aware of) been struck at by any snake unless I was holding it. I also don’t know anyone personally that has ever been bitten. Maybe we were just trained from the womb on how to live with them lol.
Edit to add funny story about pigs
We flooded for Gustav or Ike not sure exactly which one. Dam levee broke and water came up in a matter of minutes. We bailed and left the pigs to fend for themselves. When we came back home in a boat they were swimming in our yard towards my neighbor who still had about 2 inches of water in his house. I went to corral them and they ran inside his house. I had to wrestle one down in his living room and the wife had the other in his kitchen. We laughed and drank a beer after. They have since moved and we still laugh about that anytime we see each other.
Even when I was grabbing them to sell to pet stores when I was a kid, I never got bit by anything venomous. I was pretty respectful of what could happen. Lots of idiots without a clue though, I remember one year a kid went swimming out into the canal yelling WATER BANDIT and grabbed the snake off the surface of the water. Got it on ground and did a fang check and sure as shit he was holding a water moccasin. He was a couple years older than me and I still vividly remember thinking "geeze what a tard." Same crew of idiots that would raid alligator nests for baby alligators ankle deep in the water.
But about 15 years ago when Florida was getting an incredible amount of water, flooding up to my front porch, I was forced to do some work on my car and when I was under it I reached over for a took and felt a sting, came out from under the car with a snake hanging off of my hand. Thankfully the little bastard just happened to nail me on the inside edge of my hand and failed to penetrate any farther than skin deep. As calmly as I was able I came around with my left hand behind his head and pinched his mouth open and took him off of me. Then I chucked that bastard into the wall and took his head off with a shovel.
Was barely bleeding so I was confident that I didn't get injected. Poured alcohol all over my hand and sat down to see if I started to feel funny. No problem after 15 minutes so I got back under my car, gave it a really good look around and finished working on it. Some things I really do not miss.
Seriously though I’ve been playing in the swamps and bayous down here all my life and I’ve never(that I’m aware of) been struck at by any snake unless I was holding it. I also don’t know anyone personally that has ever been bitten. Maybe we were just trained from the womb on how to live with them lol.
Same.
And I’ve been around them forever. Shit, when I was a kid, there was a hurricane with accompanying flooding, and I stepped out of bed in the morning into knee-deep water, and the bastards were swimming in my room.
In Ranger School, we saw them all the time while walking waist-deep in the swamp. I had a good time making fun of the the candidates that were spooked by that.
Was down in Katrina and got a call of a drunk guy harassing contractors from up north. So we show up and we're talking to the contractor and notice he was in flip flops in knee hi grass that had water moccasins. He started explaining what was going on. I quickly stopped him and told him about the snakes, he hi stepped it to his truck like a running back.
Was the drunk guy simply a local that the northerner was unable to understand the speech of?
RioGrandeGreen
05-13-22, 23:52
Was the drunk guy simply a local that the northerner was unable to understand the speech of?
I don't remember where he was from just a drunk guy.
PatrioticDisorder
05-14-22, 06:00
Cottonmouths all DIE, mostly needlessly aggressive snake I've ever dealt with. I was actually canoeing near Markham Park and one of the damn things left the bank to swim out to my canoe just to be an ass.
If you have the opportunity to differentiate, several of them will likely be water bandits (non venomous but similar looking) and you might be able to sell them to pet stores. Weirdo people will pay lots of of money to own a snake. I "think" when I was a kid we got $25 per snake and the pet shop sold them for $75.
The mobile home probably needs to be burned down. If it has snakes, it definitely has roaches and roaches freak me out more than snakes.
My wife got bit by a baby cottonmouth that happened to be near or on the walkway from my driveway to my front door after we moved to Naples. Thankfully it was a “warning” bite, no venom. I’d much rather come across a rattlesnake, they are shy in comparison. If water moccasin’s went extinct tomorrow, that would be fine with me.
This thread popped into my head today. Yesterday I get a phone call from my daughter and she immediately went on to tell me that she was sunbathing and was almost bit in the face by 2 snakes. She was laying out in the yard on a really low beach chair and she said she saw 2 gray snakes coming at her. She jumped off the chair as fast as possible and they were chasing her. I got home and noticed 3 shovels and a pole saw laying in the driveway. She said she was throwing them at the snakes while they were fighting with each other. I told her, “bruh, they weren’t fighting, they were making baby snakes” lol.
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