Look out for snakes.

[Back-of-the-boat]

Went out on a little recon mission to find a likely spot to detect or sluice and was down by the rivers edge couldn't get past some boulders, went back up the bank to find a different route and saw a possible way, started to go and with my foot almost ready to step down, I notice about a 6 or 7 foot Rattlesnake coiled under the rock I was going to step on, HOLY @&%#. Backed out the way I came, went back to the truck to clean my jeans and reconsider if a little nugget or a few flakes of flour was worth it today and decided coin shooting the local park sounded better.What got me was it never rattled once, the head must have been pointed so it didn't sense my warmth?It blended so well it was scary, now mind you for 50 years I have been around snakes and have never been that close without a warning buzz.Stay safe and alert friends. 9 and a button was all that told me it was a rattler, it's pattern almost looked like a gopher snake.

 

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[meMiner]

Don't tell the significant other. You should have snapped a picture, close up and shown her that instead.

I still have the picture somewhere of the sidewinder I almost stepped on. It was coiled and buried except the top of his head and back. I startled and took its picture. No poking. He lived happily ever after. He didn't rattle he was so scared.

Hey Austin. It occurs to me that you should be scared of your pistol and not snakes. LOL

My snake story was on a rock trail with my wife. It was a steep hill with big boulders. I climbed to the top and turned around to pull up my wife. She was about 10 yards from me and I spotted the biggest snake of my life in between us. With great emotion, I yelled at her to turn around and go another way, but did not tell her why. She stared at me and angrily crossed her arms and yelled back: "Don't you yell at me". She stomped up the slope grumbling all the way, narrowly missing Mr Snake which did nothing. It only moved after both of us had walked by. Darn thing was big.

 

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[stefen]

For whatever reason snakes appear larger in person.

 

[dirt rider]

my Dad always carried a 22 pistol loaded with rat shot said that was his snake gun

 

[boogeyman]

Years ago, I was searching an old abandoned homestead. There were piles of trash dumped over the years. Got close to a pile of canvas and every time I'd swing left (close to the canvas) I'd hear a buzz I thought was coming from my earphone (only used one cup for safety) It didn't dawn on me what it was! Stood there checking the coil connector, headphone jack, jiggling cables then I look down at my coil and three feet away is one upset snake slithering away. Yup! One dummy lucked out that day!

 

[Fletch88]

I wear knee high Chippewa snake boots down here in southern US if I hunt anywhere besides yards or schools this time of year. Mosquitos about make it not worth it except during the heat of the day.

 

[Hoser John]

Everything out this year and tics are extremely numerous as wet winter made wild critters have many multiple births, tics too as them blood suckers are opportunists also. Rattlers are good....dead. I collect every kind of wild snake I see and relocate to my claims as they love to munch on rattlers AND keep down the rodents also. John

 

[NWMP]

For whatever reason snakes appear larger in person.

Yes indeed. Particularly office snakes that feed on work place politics.

 

[scruggs]

Yes, their out...and we have them in North Carolina too!!! Be careful out there!

 

[bobw53]

While on the snake stories.. A few years ago, in August, sit down at my desk and look to the right, and saw this little guy... In the pic, at the bottom left you can see a bit of black,
that is a dog bed that two of my dogs where sleeping on... Grabbed the sleeping dogs by the collars, picked them up, and literally threw them in an office... Came back and that sucker
hadn't moved at all.. Went and grabbed a 20x7x1.5" slab of steel, about 70lbs and came back, hadn't moved at all, so I took a pic... Then SLAM!!! He coiled just before he
got Squished... Only thing sticking out was the tip of his little tail.

And then last fall, under the porch at home, one of my dogs got bit.. I know a lot of people just let them "walk it off", but went to the clinic, this pic was within an hour of her
getting bit... Her toes pretty much couldn't have gone any further apart, it was like a catchers mitt. Only one fang in her, you can see the big blood dot above her paw... Swelling all the way up
her leg, over her shoulders and started heading down her other leg.

You know how they say the anti-venom is SOOOOO expensive.. $80.. And the hospital (on the rare occasion they need it) actually gets their anti-venom from the emergency vet clinic.
I think it was the 6th bite they had that week, and 7 the previous weekend. She was the only one that came in at all that night, so she got wined and dined and treated like a queen. Then
in the morning (the clinic closes during "regular business hours") off to my vet where she got the royal treatment all day and IV fluids and antibiotics.

Apparently they are better off getting bit in the face.. Small blood vessels and what not... Than they are on an extremity... My vet said she had only ever lost one, and the dog had been bit repeatedly and
the owner didn't bring it in for over a day.

I wanted to find that ******* and make her a snake skin collar. Poor pup was miserable.

 

[boogeyman]

Years ago, I was searching an old abandoned homestead. There were piles of trash dumped over the years. Got close to a pile of canvas and every time I'd swing left (close to the canvas) I'd hear a buzz I thought was coming from my earphone (only used one cup for safety) It didn't dawn on me what it was! Stood there checking the coil connector, headphone jack, jiggling cables then I look down at my coil and three feet away is one upset snake slithering away. Yup! One dummy lucked out that day!

Oh! forgot to mention almost got to see if Minelab coils are pee proof!

 

[smokeythecat]

Once upon a time ago, my black cat, Dusty the Magnificent (at least he thinks he's magnificent), comes hellowing up from the basement. Like a demon was chasing him. He kept reaching back and grabbing at his tail. Well, he got over it in a few minutes. I thought a tick or something had bit him. I go downstairs a day or more later, there is one of my plastic worm fishing lures laying in the middle of the floor. So I go to reach down and pick it up and methinks! Lo! I didn't remember having any that big. So as I almost reach it, I realize it is a small 10" dead garter snake.

Apparently Mr. Cat encountered it, it bit his tail (smart cat not), and the snake died or got killed.

 

[Hoser John]

B53 POOR dog took a hit, what a bummer. Lucky he lived, you almost lost a good friend. Hope no long lasting effects. Take care-John

 

[bobw53]

B53 POOR dog took a hit, what a bummer. Lucky he lived, you almost lost a good friend. Hope no long lasting effects. Take care-John

She was slow for about 3 days, and sore for about a week.. Apparently she didn't get a lot of venom, I thought the vet called it sluffing, but its sloughing, and that didn't happen.
Pretty gruesome, its the issue around the bite dying and falling off or something... https://www.google.com/search?q=sloughing&safe=off&biw=1903&bih=879&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiaz_nisI7MAhWruIMKHc8bCaUQ_AUIBigB

And in a small percentage of dogs, apparently the venom can screw up their kidneys. 6 or 8 weeks later we went back for bloodwork, and her kidneys were fine... Good thing, I had one years ago with
horrible kidneys, she died at 3, and I've got one now that doesn't have very good kidneys, and she's on prescription food, which isn't cheap..

Dogs are a lot more resistant to snake venom than humans are, pretty rare for 'em to die, I guess some breeds are better/worse than others. It wasn't a cheap date that night, but it was nice
going to the emergency clinic knowing that I had a 99% chance of not coming home with a very sick or dead dog for a change.

 

[Zip Zip]

Here are two pictures of a teen who sat on a boulder and as he lowered his arms he got bit on the hand. the second picture is his hand and arm 18 months later after many operations.
hopefully, these pictures will help people to be more aware of their surroundings. Have fun out there, but be safe !

 

[smokeythecat]

At least I don't think there are any snakes in the house tonight. Up here in Maryland, worse we'd probably encounter is a copper head. Could be timber rattlers still but the last one seen was about 20 years ago. Squished in the road. Moccassins aren't this far north yet. The Northern Water Snakes are way mean, however.

 

[gollum]

The ONLY snake I will kill any time I see one is a Water Moccasin. Other than a Mojave Green Buzztail, Moccasins are the most aggressive snake I have ever come across. Every one I have come across in the wild has chased me until I killed it.

Rattlers, I just pick up by the tail and toss them away (especially when its cold in the A.M.). I usually carry a Yucca Walking Stick, and I can use it to just flip them out of my way. When I was stationed at Ft. Bragg, NC, I kept a Copperhead (3 feet) and an Eastern Diamondback (almost nine feet). If it would have lived to see 9 feet, NC Museum of Natural History was going to buy him. He died at 8'4". The Copperhead NEVER tried to bite me. The Rattler not so much. He struck at everything (and he was F-A-S-T).

Mike

 

[Hoser John]

Bad part about water moccasins is their anti venom is only good once...from then on your in HUGE trouble. Great nature show on nat Geo about venom collecting and now for some reason not only what but exactly where is absolutely important as only a few miles can make a difference in venom compound mandating multiple anti venoms in accordance to who, what and where...wow no fun...John

 

[Au-Nv]

Found this under a bush while detecting made me jump. I believe it is a mohave green very poisonous

 

[Tejaas]

Ya'll with dogs that may come in contact with rattlesnakes ought consider vaccinating them.


~Tejaas~

 

[Zip Zip]

Found this under a bush while detecting made me jump. I believe it is a mohave green very poisonous

Looks like a Mojave Green to me, but I have only seen some once (in a nest) and ran like hell.