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The snake who came to dinner, ID needed He Dog?
Ruger4me
Member, Moderator Posts: 3,863 ******
I was grilling a skirt steak for tacos last night and this guy showed up... I've never seen one like him on my property before, he is only about 2 feet plus long and no I didn't kill it I just used a 6 foot t-post to encourage him to go the other way...
I figured this was what he was after! 🤣
Comments
Looks like a copperhead to me.
They will bite if provoked but their venom is not that bad. My dogs have both been bit and they recovered fine with a little benadryl.
...I'm not Dale, but looks like a Copperhead...seldom kill people but do have a nasty bite...
I catch 25+ a year, definitely a Copperhead.
Where are you located?
JimmyJack Just North of Fort Worth in Wise county TX.
My take is a copper head as well, Fox snakes have a head that resembles your thumb (not triangular). We have many fox snakes by us in SW Wisconsin. Glad you didn't kill it.
Copperhead. We got lots of 'em in the NC mountains.
No rattlers or cottonmouths but lots of copperheads up here. One bit my dog once. Didn't kill it but caused quite a bit of distress.
That would be a dead one, cause if it's not a copperhead it looks like one. We have them here in southern, Il. and to me they are an aggressive snake. Wife has treated several people who were just outside hiking or just walking and people got bit just because they were there. And no I just don't kill snakes of any kind but that one would be a 12 gauge, overkill, but would work.
100% copperhead. I would NOT recommend getting bit by it. They can be deadly, but usually only require hospitalization(which could still cause lasting effects and is not fun), unless bit on a finger(may lose the finger).
Ours are a different variety than yours, so the coloration is different. Here are a couple close ups of the business end.
I still have the scars from a copperhead from 40 years ago I spent 2 days in the hospital my forearm swelled up and looked like Popeyes for at least a month. They get no pass from me
I caught this big boy on top of my propane tank.
Broad banded copperhead: akistrodon contortix laticinctus. Poisonous
HeDog taught me well.😁
Usually if found close by, I relocate them rather than kill them.
"I caught this big boy on top of my propane tank." and in your underwear no less! LOL!
He had already changed by the time the picture was taken. Don
yep it was a harmless greensnake till Allen sprayed him brown..............
He Dog not required for that one, copper head.
any snake with a triangle shaped head and does not have round eyes ( pupils ) I tend to proceed with great caution .
we only see dangerous snakes on vacation down south
lucky where we live venomous snakes are rarer than hens teeth .
I wish I had the photo my mom took once while when we took mom and dad to south Carolina with us
mom knows how I am about snakes and took a photo of one by the walking trail when she had pictures developed ( yes a long time ago ) she pointed out a small garter snake said look what I seen .. we looked at the photo sure enough it was a small snake as she said ... but about a foot back behind the small snake in the grass / weeds was a huge copper head coiled up . when we pointed it out she about crapped her paints needless to say she never seen it when she took the photo LOL
I think my work here is done. At least on the easy stuff.😈😊
Thanks for all the help everyone! My wife said it's a copperhead when I took the pictures and then she came outside a took a look, neither of us had seen one before, she based it on the color and I agreed because of the shape of the head but I told her I'd paste it here since I knew many of you are more knowledgeable about snakes.
I've killed many rattlers in my younger years in the Mojave desert (sidewinders) but here on this property we have only seen a few bull/rat snakes and a couple of little tree snakes killed by cats and the occasional moccasin down by the ponds. This guy was a first and to be honest I hope the last I see.
Thanks again.
Are you allergic to bee/wasp venom? If so, you may also be allergic to snake venom.
My neighbor, a retired firefighter, is allergic to bee venom. He was cleaning up around his place and was bitten on one finger by a very small copperhead. He had a massive reaction to the bite, and actually flat-lined twice in the helicopter on the way to the hospital. It was touch-and-go for a few weeks, but he eventually got over it. He says he will not put his hands where he can't see anymore.
The first snake pictured is definitely a broad-banded copperhead.
Yup, as the others stated it’s a copperhead. Luckily you gave it some distance, they’re vipers with an ugly bite.
In April I was at Lake Havasu, Az. marking the parking area for our annual off road motorcycle Grand Prix. I came within five feet of stepping on this guy.
He was an easy four feet long. Luckily it was almost sunset and it had cooled down enough to keep him pretty docile. If it had been warmer he would’ve jumped up and been ready for battle.
I had to poke him a bit with a stick to get him to move off into the brush away from the parking area.
Stay safe.
Copperheads are not vipers. They are pit vipers. Vipers are only found in the old world, Eurasia the middle east and Africa. Pit vipers are found in the New World and Eastern Asia.
Yep. The largest is the Gaboon viper found in central Africa. Came across one coiled and resting while spending time there. Although not real long, the girth was huge nearly a foot across at the largest section. The coiled diameter was at least 20". Snake was dam close to 6' long. Did not care to measure. Left the sleeping dog alone. I did take pics but, in those days they were 35mm.
Chiefr, we had a breeding pair and produced over 150 babies over several years. We sent them to at least a dozen zoos and venom labs. The female was so large and heavy trying to work her on a hook would break ribs. We trained her to crawl out of her exhibit into a large trashcan, so we could clean the exhibit. We kept the water in a corner and created a plexiglass shield we could set into the corner to change the water. At one point she got a gum infection and we had to treat her. Mostly we could work her in a Lucite tube, but to get to that infection we had to go hands on. She was a very patient patient, but I can tell you the fangs were 1.25" long. I have nightmares, but about crocodiles, not that lady.