# Shop Snake



## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

I have an unexpected visitor in my shop:



















Stopped me dead in my tracks. Okay, I might be a bit of a wussy when it comes to snakes. I don't want to kill it if it's a good snake, but I do realize that most snake identifications are made on dead snakes. I think it's either a rat snake (keeper) or a water moccasin (not a keeper). I couldn't get him to look at me so I could get a good look at his face (I don't think he understood English) so I only have these two pics to show. It's about 4 feet long and about 1-1/2" to 2" around.

He didn't move at all when I moved a few things to snap the pics, so I'm guessing it's resting before tonight's hunt. I don't think I'll be working in the shop after dark:30 until he and I can come to an agreement . . .

Anybody out there can help identify this visitor?


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## whitebeast88 (May 27, 2012)

i'd never go back in my shop again if i seen that!!!!!


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

I did a little Internet research, looking at pictures of both the rat snake and cottonmouth aka water moccasin. They actually look pretty similar so I'm still unsure. They are both native to south Louisiana.

Think I'll give Billy the Exterminator a call.


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## longgone (May 5, 2009)

choot'em'


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## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

I have a shop snake. I see his shed skin. He keeps the mice gone. I got a couple in the house. (mice, not snakes) Put out traps. I caught a cat and one small dog. Got poison instead.


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

I'm not sure why but I know how to fly when I see a snake. We just couldn't cohabitate in my shop.


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## firefighterontheside (Apr 26, 2013)

http://ufwildlife.ifas.ufl.edu/water_moccasin_watersnake_comparison.shtml

Seems like you really need to see its head and tail to identify.


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## nailbanger2 (Oct 17, 2009)

Here's what I first thought when I saw your pic-

https://www.google.com/search?q=diamondback+rattlesnake&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=VPUHUoTMBKKSyAGd1IDACA&ved=0CC0QsAQ&biw=1034&bih=732


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

Thanks for the comments. I guess I'm glad to know I'm not the only snake wuss.

UPDATE: Good news and bad news.










I went out to the shop to see if I could get a good picture of the snake's head, and maybe to do some harm to it while I was there. The good news is that he wasn't where he was. The bad news is that he wasn't where he was. He's on the move!

New shop rule No. 1: No more working bare footed.

New shop rule No. 2: Look before you move stuff around the shop.

New shop rule No. 3: Learn to identify the difference between rat poop and snake poop. I've been seeing droppings but I assumed they were all rodent droppings. I think I've been wrong at least half of the time.

I don't really have a plan now . . .


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## redSLED (Mar 21, 2013)

Couldn't you just pick it up the snake with a long dowel and move him/her out in a garbage can w/ lid? Box him in a corner first of course. It'll make for some exciting workshop drama - and better than the spousal kind.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@DonW-That was an unusual reaction from me. Snakes don't usually bother me, but I guess the fact that I was exposed threw me for a loop.

@firefighter-I did get a look at the tail, and there was no rattle. I think we can rule out diamondback rattler. Sorry I didn't get a pic of the tail to show.

@redSLED-Now I gotta find him first, then corner him and put him away for safekeeping! I expect that we'll be looking for each other for the next few days or so.


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## firefighterontheside (Apr 26, 2013)

The tail on the moccasin is supposed to be short and thick where the tail on the water snake is supposed to be long and skinny. I went into my chicken coop to look for eggs a while back. What I found was the biggest black rat snake I've ever seen. I knew it was harmless but I was so surprised you'd have thought it was an anaconda. I don't like to kill snakes but I couldn't have it eating my eggs. I shot it and as I carried it away there was egg draining out its mouth.


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## Makarov (Jun 16, 2013)

What you saw probably was rat droppings. That is why the snake was there. It wanted a meal.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Makarov-You're probably right. I'm working on a schedule now so that his hunting and meal time don't conflict with my shop time.


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## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

Bill, it might have been a chicken snake. They eat eggs. They will crawl under a hen. If you have a feed store near, they may sell solid eggs. Snake swallows it and cant crush it. Snake is eliminated. I just kill them. Hard to keep them out once they get started.


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## JoeinGa (Nov 26, 2012)

Time to call The TURTLEMAN!

*YEYEYEYEYEYEYEYEYEYEYEY! LIVE ACTION!*


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## Momcanfixit (Sep 19, 2012)

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK

If I saw that in my shop, there'd be more than snake poop on the ground.


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## nailbanger2 (Oct 17, 2009)

Too funny, Sandra!


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## terryR (Jan 30, 2012)

DonB, I've got one that looks just like him here in Alabama, lives outside my shop on the porch. Huge rat snake. Mine is 6+ feet long. If he wiggles near the door again, he's dead.

Problem with yours…we can't see the important parts…head or tail.

Do ya have a shotgun?


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## DIYaholic (Jan 28, 2011)

The snake is lost. Why else would he be in your woodshop….
He belongs in a plumber's shop!!!


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## chrisstef (Mar 3, 2010)

Id have to move out if i seen a snake in my shop. With, or without poison, all you woulda seen outta this guy would be heels haulin a$$.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Sandra-I had to check to make sure! Clean . . . this time.

@terryR-Yup, I have a shotgun. I really don't want the blood and the subsequent foul odor, but a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. Reading up on rat snakes tells me that they can get up to 101" (over 9')-yikes. Oh, and they are constrictors too. If my wife sneaks up on me and grabs my ankle, I think I'd pass out right then and there.

@DIY-I'm pretty sure it wasn't a plumber's snake, but you can never tell about plumbers.

@Stef- Looks like I'm not going with the poison option-at least not until he gets rid of all the shop mice!

BTW, I also learned that in the south, they are also known as "chicken snakes" because they do like chicken eggs, as LJ firemanontheside pointed out earlier. They are also excellent climbers, so I might have to amend "New shop rule No. 2" to include looking up and on top of stuff before it's pulled down from upper cabinets!


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## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

Naw Randy, he left that job. Got tired of what they kept feeding him


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## Manitario (Jul 4, 2010)

try not to be afraid of the snake, snakes sense fear…don't think about his beady little eyes watching…waiting…lol


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## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

I know you've all seen this but, I just gotta do it….

A B, C D Snakes?
M N O Snakes
O S M R Snakes
C D B D Eyes


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Rob-Who's the hunter and who's the hunted, right? That was funny. It might help me sleep better tonight-NOT.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Gary-That's a new one to me! Pretty funny too.


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## firefighterontheside (Apr 26, 2013)

This is a picture of a brown water snake. It looks to me just like your new pet by the square shapes on its back.


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## DanKrager (Apr 13, 2012)

DonB, I laughed until I cried over "If my wife sneaks up on me and grabs my ankle, I think I'd pass out right then and there." Whew! 
We have mostly black rat snakes here in so. IL. I watched a 4" black climb the trunk of a large oak tree, going straight up the bark like a snail on glass. I could not detect how he was hanging on. After about 40 min of exploring the entire tree (almost 90') he transferred from a pencil sized branch of the oak across about 14" of open space to a slender branch on a long needle pine. I was just dumbfounded. A little later it seemed he wanted to play with the big green snake I was using to water the lawn. When he found out how long it was he high tailed it outta there!. 
I almost stepped on a water moccasin I came upon unexpectedly looking for mushrooms this spring. They are so scarce here that it was the first one I'd seen in 13 years here. I took some up close pictures to identify it, and I learned that many venomous snakes, especially vipers, have a very distinctive heat sensing pit between their eye and nostril on both sides. You don't have to get close to see it, fortunately.
Good luck!
DanK


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## terryR (Jan 30, 2012)

Yikes, that brown water snake is going to give me nightmares! We have tons of them around here, and they resemble copperheads more than copperheads!

I live pretty far out in the countryside and have to respect snakes as part of the food chain…

...until I see one in an area where I mow grass! That's why I mow the grass. To claim that piece of land as mine. 

Don, I hope ya find the snake, and convince him to leave. Most rat snakes I've run across don't want to fight, they are happy to leave if given a clear path…


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## JustJoe (Oct 26, 2012)

If he just laid there and giggled at you while you moved boards around or took his picture, then my guess is that it's not a water moccasin. I'd still probably jump 3' in the air and scream like a schoolgirl if I found one chilling behind the plywood, but that's just me.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

Don, I have snakes in my shop and NO mice and very few bugs. It is very rare for me to see one in the daytime so I leave them alone.

You probably already know that venomous snakes have slitted pupils and harmless snakes have round pupils (coral snakes are the exception). Poisonous snakes also have one piece scales on their underside from head to tail. Harmless snakes have 2 piece scales from the vent to the end of their tail.

That does not look like the brown water snakes we have.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@terryR-So far, that's my "plan". I do expect to see him again. I only hope he observes the schedule I made.

@JustJoe- I am getting more confident that it isn't/wasn't a water moccasin. I am, however, more confident that I screamed like a little girl when he made himself known to me.

@Andy-You taught me something new today. I did not know about the scales on harmless vs. harmful snakes. Now I just need to figure out how to get "my" snake to roll over so I can see which category this one falls into.


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## Dark_Lightning (Nov 20, 2009)

Didn't know about the belly scales. Most snakes I have run into hiking here in California have been non-venomous. The more noise you make while hiking, the better. The snakes have lived a long time by avoiding us big creatures. I have run into rattlers in the mountains. You just have to pay attention. That's hard to do when climbing a mountain, and having to reach over an edge for a handhold. I know a guy who got nailed by a rattler while reaching over an edge. He was OK, simply because the rattler had to have heard him coming, and didn't give him a dose when he reached over the edge to pull himself up, just a "defensive bite".


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

Just a word to the wise… Please be sure of the species of this snake!

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2013/08/05/f-snake-python-sales-ownership-risks.html


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## DanKrager (Apr 13, 2012)

This is the snake I almost stepped on and have identified it as an eastern water moccasin. There are two lakes nearby and it may have been in transit…








I tried to enhance the picture some because it was so washed out from sunlight. My camera wouldn't shut down far enough to keep the glare out. You can pretty clearly see the large pits between the eye and nostril, even in this crappy pic. The other distinctive feature is that the tail doesn't taper smoothly to a point. The back end of the snake is roundish with a little appendage that could fool you into believing it is a rattler at quick glance, but it isn't a rattle. 
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGS/Shared/StaticFiles/animals/images/800/water-moccasin.jpg&imgrefurl=http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/enlarge/water-moccasin_image.html&h=600&w=800&sz=99&tbnid=lydFlYOPlsLG_M:&tbnh=91&tbnw=121&prev=/search%3Fq%3Deastern%2Bwater%2Bmoccasin%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=eastern+water+moccasin&usg=__ZG4WqsHEb0Pxrevwl2cQpHZ_VbY=&docid=q4d4BnGVuawauM&sa=X&ei=MlAIUpPyNaGs2gWatoGQBg&ved=0CC4Q9QEwAA&dur=59#imgdii=_
DanK


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## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

Holly crap, it's even worse that you can't find him now!

New shop rule No. 4: A 410 Shotgun needs to be a permanent fixture in the shop.


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## tefinn (Sep 23, 2011)

Looks a lot like this pic of a rat snake I found.










Don't take any chances til your sure though! Glad the worst I have to deal with are mosquitoes!


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## PineChopper (May 21, 2012)

When I first saw it, I thought it was a King Snake.


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## jumbojack (Mar 20, 2011)

Have you considered obtaining a mongoose. No….wait, I think a mongoose is just a vicious rat.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

I'm going on a shop safari this morning. Picture Elmer Fudd on opening day of wabbit season, without that big floppy hat-that's how I'm dressed this morning.

@Atom-Your friend and fellow climber was very lucky. I did not know that rattlers can "decide" when to inject venom. Learned something new again today.

@poopie-That story made its way on the news here too. Very, very sad story.

@DanK-That's a pretty good pic-looks too close for comfort for me. Also looks like he had a meal shortly before he posed for the picture.

@Maur-I like your recommended new shop rule No. 4. I do have a BB gun now, but that would just tickle a snake of that size and probably just piss him off.

@tefinn-The pic you posted looks like the black color is more prominent in that specimen than in mine. Brown is more prominent in mine.

@PineChopper-King snake is a possibility too. There are a bunch of snakes that have very similar looks to them.

@jumbojack-A mongoose, eh? The first thing I thought of was Rikki-Tikki-Tavi (Rudyard Kipling).

Thanks for all the great comments. It's been very educational for me, and I hope, for others as well.


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## terryR (Jan 30, 2012)

Would love a photo of Don all dressed up for a snake hunt!

Don, please don't fire a BB gun at the snake.  He will probably get pissed off.

Nor a .22 caliber snake shot…I shot a very pissed off rattler 14 times last year with that snake shot crap…gave away the rest of that ammo! Go get my .410 while I watch where the snake crawls…it's behind the seat of my truck!


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## waho6o9 (May 6, 2011)

Glad your ok Don, and be thankful you didn't find one like this:


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

So you found JUST ONE snake huh? At least it wasn't a rattler. HMmmm…


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## UpstateNYdude (Dec 20, 2012)

@HorizontalMike - I'd probably leap clear out of my pants if I saw that, the only time I've ever seen a snake was when I was hiking with my brother on the tongue mountain trail loop in Bolton Landing, we saw a mama rattler and 7-8 babies, needless to say we heard the rattle and were like WTF is that, then we looked about 10-12ft ahead almost crapped are pants and ran. Now my brother is 40 and I'm 28 and he is bit heftier and more out of shape, but I'll be damned if he wasn't 20ft ahead of me and gaining the whole time LOL!


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

Well, I did venture out on my shop safari. No snake-looks like he's respecting the shop schedule I posted on the shop door. During my walkabout in the shop, though, I did realize the plethora of really good hiding places I've created for snakes and rodents-under the workbench, inside cabinets (uppers and lowers), drawers, shop scrap wood piles, etc. I thought I had spotted him again this morning, but it was just a small diameter shop vac hose!

@terryR-I would be concerned about a ricochet inside the shop anyway. Even with a .410, I'll have to ask him to step outside.

@waho and @HMike-Are y'all trying to keep me from sleeping AT ALL? Both of those pics are impressive, in a National Geographic sort of way.


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

My most stupid moment came when I was doing an endangered species survey on a 66,000 acre military base, while out in the boonies. While tracking birds, I came across a rather large hole/cavern in the ground, probably ~12in by ~18in. Hmm I thought, I wonder if this could be a fox den or some other critter's den. I walked up, bent over, and with my head less than 2ft from the hole, and stared into the hole to see if I could see anything…

Nope, couldn't see any traces of critters so I straightened up, stepped over the hole and started walking on down the line. After about 10ft away, I thought I would take one last look back at the hole. Geez! That was when I saw the coiled Western Timber Rattler, JUST ONE FOOT to the side of the hole. At that very second, the snake saw that I had recognized it and raised up in a striking coil, looked at me, began to rattle and slithered down the hole all pissed off that I made it move! Geez! my face was less than 2ft from being struck when I was staring down the hole yet the camouflage on the snake made it invisible and I didn't even see it when I was so close to it! I will never forget that stupid moment! BTW, I was several miles away from any help and would not have been rescued in a timely fashion. Scary stuff for sure!...


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## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

Mike, I bet you still get the puckers when you think of it. I know I would


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@terryR-My wife snapped this picture before this morning's shop safari:


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## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

Must be wearing camo….


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

Having some trouble posting a picture from the web. Sorry 'bout that!


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## BillWhite (Jul 23, 2007)

An old feller I knew (now passed) once said, "Don't trust nuthin' that ain't got no shoulders".
I believe him to this day.
Bill


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Gary-I think the picture posting issue has been fixed . . .


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## mochoa (Oct 9, 2009)

I know have this picture in my head of Don working in the shop wearing cowboy boots to protect his ankles.


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## JayT (May 6, 2012)




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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Maur-Actually, steel toe boots with blue jeans! What are you wearing, Jake from State Farm?


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@JayT-Too funny! Looks more like Lee Harvey Oswald heading off to the Texas School Book Depository. Just sayin'.


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

Now my wife will be asking why I'm packing my 45 to go to the shop.


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## firefighterontheside (Apr 26, 2013)

Khakis


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## nailbanger2 (Oct 17, 2009)

Don, did you name him Gubrix? Just askin'.


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## Jim Jakosh (Nov 24, 2009)

I know what I'd do right away and then you can lay him out to identify him! I don't like snakes of any kind. I have all kinds of sharp tools in my shop that will do the job! A lathe skew comes to mind first ! I would not shoot him with the concrete under him. A ricochet can get you.
.......Jim


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## Dark_Lightning (Nov 20, 2009)

I'm with Jim on the sharp force trauma solution, but I'd hate to grind a lathe chisel back 1/8" to clear the chip. Depending on where you live, you can use snake loads in a .38. They pack enough punch to take out a snake at close range, and don't have one LARGE pellet ricocheting around the shop. Alternatively, a shovel is a mighty handy implement. Even if you only hit it mid-body, it'll have difficulty attacking you.

Where I live, we get black widow spiders with abdomens as big as my pinkie- I have BIG hands. Those things give me the heebie-jeebies, and get taken out immediately. Spray paint is really effective, and I've always got it around.


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## toeachhisown (Eddie) (Mar 30, 2011)

Don looks to be a chicken snake think some times know as rat snakes they are non poisonous









https://www.facebook.com/video/embed?video_id=1275977703832


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@DonW-Please don't use your Stanley 45 on a snake, unless you have a bunch of extra cutters. Oh, you meant a 45 caliber! You could shoot the snake through the wall with that thing.

@firefighter-She sounds hideous. Well, she's a guy, so . . .

@nailbanger-I did NOT create an LJ profile named "Gubrix" for my shop snake! That Gubrix post was strange.

@JimJakosh-Cheap chisels sound like a good idea. Then I could get some better chisels!

@Atom-A sharp shovel is my usual tool of choice for making snakes assume room temperature.

@Eddie-I think it is a rat/chicken/corn snake. That's a good picture.


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## lumberjoe (Mar 30, 2012)

I would have burned my shop to the ground. No joke. I ran from a 2 foot garter snake like a 6 year old girl who's hair was on fire a few weeks ago.


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## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

Eddie, you dog….now I gotta go change my shorts


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Eddie-The video got me too! Add Eddie to the list of LJs trying to keep me from EVER sleeping again!


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

eddie, We'll get even with you so watch yer back!


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@lumberjoe- "I ran from a 2 foot garter snake like a 6 year old girl who's hair was on fire" Now that's funny!


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## UpstateNYdude (Dec 20, 2012)

Holy hell eddie, I was expecting to see a small cow in the belly of that thing instead I screamed like a 4 year old girl and my wife and 1 yr old run down to see what happened and I showed them and my wife screamed bloody murder and my 1 yr old cried…so not cool


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@James101-I actually have a tool that looks similar to the tool you linked to. It has a wire cable loop coming out of a small diameter pipe about 3' long. The loop comes out of the safe end of the tool and is tightened with a pull handle. I could probably use that, but he's still playing hide and seek with me. I'm not at home now, so I can't put up a picture of that tool described above.


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## firefighterontheside (Apr 26, 2013)

The bad thing is you'll probably never that snake again, but you'll always be wondering.


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## terryR (Jan 30, 2012)

+1 to using a lasso to get him outside…then shoot him! 

I think someone mentioned a few days ago how venomous snakes have only one row of scales running down their belly…here's a 4 foot rattler shed I just found outside my shop doors…one row of scales down the belly.










AND seven little buttons where his tail was!

'Tis the season…


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## tomd (Jan 29, 2008)

Come on, the guys from Texas call them toothpicks.


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## eao2012 (Jan 14, 2013)

Man, I would freak if I saw that in my shop! I hate snakes :-/ Venomous or non-venomous


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## Mahdeew (Jul 24, 2013)

I always have a snake catcher handy. It is so easy to make and it works like a charm (no pun intended). All you need is a 1/2" pvc pipe about 4' long; fold a stiff rope in half and run it through the pipe. The loop at the end goes around the snake neck. They will stand there and let you put it on. Once around their neck, pull tight on the rope on your end and pick them up and let them go back in nature and do their thing.


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## rejo55 (Apr 5, 2012)

Don, Don, Don, I can't believe that any self-respecting *********************************** from Lafayette would stir up such a ruckus about a li'l ol' snake. Hell, I grew up in NORTH Louisiana and stomped around in sloughs with knee-hi rubber boots on at night with a carbide headlight frog hunting. I considered it a dull night if I didn't get at least one cottonmouth inside my boot. Snakes will come to a light in the water and half the time the water was deeper than my boots and they would just fall in. Usually, after the second one in the same night, I went home, but that's only because I had scared the frogs plumb out of Franklin Parish with my jumping around and screaming.

The best way I know to identify your guest is to kill it, skin it, and fry it. If it tastes like chicken, it's a chicken snake. If it tastes like chicken that's been eating fish, its some kind of water snake. If it tastes like cotton, throw it away, 'cause it's a cottonmouth, and them thangs is pizen!!!

Anyway, this has been an interesting post and I hope your dilemma is soon resolved.
Have a good'un

Joe


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## ChuckC (May 13, 2010)

yeah, I would have to sell the house if I saw that.


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## ashahidan (Dec 1, 2009)

The skin pattern of the snake looks like that of a boa to me. I never like snakes and feel that a dead snake is the safest snake. You shoud not have waited for it to get away and hide somewhere in your house.

A few years back i saw the black tail of a snake disappearing behind a cabinet in my workshop. A black snake is a bobra .i also saw a dead rat on the floor. I suspected the snake came from the bushes of a vacant lot near my house.

I was too scared of snakes to hunt it down myself. So I called some contract workers working on a house nearby.They helped moved all items near the wall.Then they pinned the head of the snake with a sharp bamboo stick. the snake somehow managed to spit some poison on a worker's face but luckily it missed his eyes.

Now the vacant land had been cleared and i didn't see any more snakes around. But I am still careful whenever I moved anything that might provide a space for a snake to hide.

I never trust a snake to be harmless. Two month's ago a cobra killed a sleeping baby. sometime ago a lady was bitten by a king cobra that had climbed on to her bed while she was sleeping. She died. That is why it is better to treat all snakes as dangerous . If a snake is not poisonous it could still bite.


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## Gene01 (Jan 5, 2009)

Around here we have bull snakes and gopher snakes, as well as rattlesnakes.
I hate rodents worse than I hate snakes. Well, I don't really hate snakes, but I do give them their space.
Last summer there was a fair sized rattler who liked to curl up just inside the man door to our machine shed. I had a couple sheets of plywood laying on the dirt floor and mice/rats had burrowed under the ply and nested there. 
I always had a nice one way conversation with the snake each time I opened that door. She listened well. after a few months it was gone and so were the rodents!
Yesterday, while on my weekly weed killing foray, I found what may have been one of her offsprings curled up in the shade of the shop. Cute little thing. Not at all afraid of me. It's momma must've told it I was a friendly. It's not there this morning, though. 
When the U of AZ was working on a rattlesnake bite serum, back in the 60's, they paid $.75-$1.50 for rattlers. Beer was $.99 a six pack. A friend and I kept ourselves in beer for a few months by catching them with the lasso described by mrjinx007. We carried them in a duffle bag supplied by the Air Force.


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

http://m.benningtonbanner.com/bennington/db_10548/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=41fA6JH5&storycount=156&detailindex=4&pn=&ps=


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## SCOTSMAN (Aug 1, 2008)

Please do not consider yourself a wuss because you have a healthy natural aversion to them .It comes with us and also many other animals from the womb a built in detection and safety system .If you like/wish perfectly natural andhealthy way to be and wise to be cautious after all it could have been a very dangerous variety and if you have children or pets then you should be protective I say you get a thumbs up ten out of ten for reacting the way you did just alike any normal person would very kindest regards and keep well my friend Alistair


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

Note the part in my link, Upon arrival, police refused to exit their cars,


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## terryR (Jan 30, 2012)

^"to protect and serve" ?
...or, save yur own butt?


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

I got back late last night from a work trip so I've been away from LJs for a couple of days. I did visit the shop this morning and my uninvited guest was not there. I did look around the shop a bit. I know he's probably gone for good, at least until he needs another meal.

@James101 and @mrjinx007-I have this tool pictured below. If I see him again, I'll try to lasso him with it. It's very sturdy, but uncomfortably short for this task at just under 30". It has a stranded steel cable as the loop. I found it in a family barn that we tore down a couple of years ago. The family raised cows, and this tool was probably used to handle the cattle (for branding, maybe?).










@rejo55-I enjoyed your description of identifying the snake by taste-very clever! Know what the difference is between a regular zoo and a Louisiana zoo? Both zoos have genus and species identification, as well as information about habitat, eating habits and related things. However, the Louisiana zoo is unique in that it also has recipe cards at the exhibits!

@ashahidan-I hear you, man. I have an 18-month old granddaughter that I have to worry about!

@GeneH-I have been referring to the snake as a male. Now I have to wonder if the snake might drop a litter of little ones in my shop. I certainly hope she wasn't nesting.

@DonW-That must have been a really dangerous snake to keep the popo in their cruisers.

@Scotsman-I call it a "healthy respect" for snakes.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

Don, That is a HOG snare! It loops around their upper jaw.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Andy-I figured you would know what that was. My brother-in-law used to raise hogs too so I guess that explains it being in the barn.


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## superdav721 (Aug 16, 2010)

Thats what you get for living down south.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Dave-You're right, of course. We get hurricanes, tornadoes, floods and almost every venomous snake on God's green earth! We also get fertile ground, plenty of rain, good quality groundwater, good people (mostly) and lots of other good stuff.

BTW, I haven't seen him/her in the last few days. Apparently, posting the shop schedule on the shop door did the trick!


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

Don, Don't let yer guard down! He'll be back when you least expect him.


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## DanKrager (Apr 13, 2012)

It would be interesting to see how the snake reacts to a coiled garden hose… or even a rubber snake like you can get at garden shops.
DanK


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Andy-I certainly can guarantee that I haven't forgotten about him/her. Every time I open the shop door, I look for a pair of little beady eyes, and since it could be a climber, I look up and down. It does take me a little longer to get started in the shop now.

@Dan-At this point, a garden hose would probably scare both of us! And don't give any of my southern LJ brothers any ideas about punking me with a rubber snake!


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

OK Don, I gotta tell my favorite shop snake story: A buddy was visiting the shop and suddenly he looked really spooked. I turned around to see about 8" of blacksnake sticking out of the wall where a gas pipe goes through the drywall (looked just like that scene from Indiana Jones). I told him that was my shop snake and not to bother him. He now keeps a sharp eye on the walls and floor when he comes to visit!


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## Pimzedd (Jan 22, 2007)

Only good snake is a dead snake!


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Pimzedd-My own history is that most of the snake identifications I've done have been on dead snakes. My intention was to do him harm to the point of him assuming shop temperature. I just didn't get to the shovel fast enough. BTW, I have not seen him since the original posting . . but I know he's out there!


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

Don, I caught a snake going into my dove pen that is identical to your pic. Common king/bull snake. Very docile and harmless.He let me pick him up and carry him out to the pasture without ever even opening his mouth.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

Thanks, Andy. It helps knowing that he's a "good" snake anyway. I don't think I'll try to pick him up and gently "relocate" him.


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## eao2012 (Jan 14, 2013)

I was reminded of this thread last night.

Late last night I let my dog outside to go take a wizz before we went to bed and as I was opening the back door and my dog rushed outside I saw a 3' long copperhead laying out on my concrete porch right outside the door. My dog didn't even notice it and ran right by it. I guess the copperhead was comfortable because he didn't move when my dog came close to it. I ran to the garage and got a shovel and cut its head off, all while trying to keep my dog off the back porch.

Copperheads are the most venomous snake around here and are becoming more and more common in my backyard. This situation just reinforces to me how much I hate snakes, whether they are poisonous or not.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Maroon-Agree with the venomosity of the copperhead. I would have killed him dead too. We have those here too and they seem to be spreading fast. There was a local news article on just in the last week or so about that.

BTW, I have not seen my shop snake since its original sighting 38 days ago. I still am more aware of its possible presence and even moreso when my ankles are bare.


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## Wolfdaddy (May 18, 2013)

I saw this thread earlier today, then a few hours ago I had my own shop snake experience. 
I went out to the garage to put the old range hood out for someone to come pick up, opened the garage door and there was a huge black racer sitting there. I don't usually have a problem with snakes, especially black racers, but I stopped dead in my tracks. I calmly put the range hood between us, and started walking toward him so that he would go away, which is what they usually do. He had other ideas tho. Instead of slithering away, he coiled himself up and shook his tail at me like a rattler and kind of backed himself into a corner by the trash cans, so I started trying to maneuver around him and give him an opening. No go. He wound up inside the garage, in the corner behind paint cans and a folded up card table and chairs. I found a big inflatable ducky bathtub thingie and tried to scare him away with that. Didn't work. Just pissed him off more and he actually struck at that a couple times. So I got a stick and tried poking and prodding at him trying to get him OUT of the garage and he just kept going deeper and deeper INTO the garage. I wound up moving some stuff around, and when I got to the card table up against the wall, I looked behind it and there was ANOTHER snake. *sigh* 
More poking and prodding, and that one wound up slithering right past my foot to go DEEPER into the garage. While this was happening the first snake finally grabbed the chance I'd been trying to give him for almost 10 minutes now, and he made his escape. Meanwhile I lost track of the other one, and for all I know that one is still in the garage. I left the door up off the ground about 2 inches so the damn thing wouldn't be trapped.

We live on a lake around the corner from my parents house, where I grew up, on the same lake. I have lots of snake stories 

One of my favorites includes a small rowboat, a big clump of bushes on the edge of the water, a bunch of baby moccasins, and a pellet gun. 
And there was the time a couple months ago where I watched a black racer (may have been the same one) catch a lizard at my feet just outside my front door. My 2 year old daughter was pretty fascinated by that.


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## Dano46 (Sep 21, 2009)

I would run into the house, changed pants, grabbed a gun. One of us has to go!


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## Jim Jakosh (Nov 24, 2009)

Get you a mongoose!


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## AngieO (Jul 9, 2012)

Yikes! The fact that you never found him to get rid of him is scary. 
I received a link to this topic after sharing my little visitor last night. I'm not at all afraid of snakes… But if I found one in my shop I'd scream. But last night as I was working on a project I kept hearing a noise. After the third time I went to investigate… I found a little opossum in on rod my drawers I had left open. Yes… I ran. Then came back and told him he needed to leave. He did not understand my English… Either that it he was playing dumb and thought I couldn't see him hiding in there. 
Apparently I missed the shop hours that he posted and I was out there making noise way too late. After I went I side he came out to play. When I came back out he was climbing my lumber and went up into the rafters. Today… No son of him. I left the garage door cracked hoping he'd leave since there is no food in there. I don't know. I was very cautious working out there today. Tomorrow… Live trap will be set. I'd rather have a opossum than a snake. But I'll be honest… If it was a big spider… If move every single thing out into the driveway and put it back one little piece at a time till I was sure he was gone. I am scared of spiders. I know they are there and I'm reminded every time I walk in there. But so far they keep hidden and they are small.

Stick to the shop rules. Lol


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## firefighterontheside (Apr 26, 2013)

As soon as I saw that Angie had posted here, I knew why. I thought you were going to ask Don to bring his snake.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Wolfdaddy-The surprise of seeing a snake (or a possum in AngieO's case) when you don't expect it is pretty spooky. I like the story of the black racer having caught a snack lizard while your daughter watched. National Geographic live!

@Dano-That is actually pretty close to what I had planned, only my prey decided that it was hide-and-seek time.

@JJakosh-That is the second suggestion I had to get a mongoose, and I thought of Rikki Tikki Tavi (Rudyard Kipling's Jungle Book). I would worry that I would trade a snake problem for a mongoose problem . . .

@Angie-If I could find it, I would be glad to ship my little shop friend to you so he/she could meet your little shop friend. We could arrange a Battle of the Shop Pests! Maybe Pay Per View might be interested . . .

@FFOTS-I was wondering if/when someone would try to bring out two pests together.

UPDATE: While I have not seen the snake in over 45 days, I did see a good sized rat using some tool manuals as bedding material. I am thinking I'm going to be a "daddy" to another batch of rats! I am also thinking that, since the rats are still around, that the snake has bugged out. Oh, well-that's life in south Louisiana . . .


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

. . . and on a related note, I think I figured out where my shop towels are going. I guess they're getting ready for their little ones! So exciting-NOT!


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

Don, You need to get more snakes! Or maybe a shop cat or Jack Russell.


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## GaryC (Dec 31, 2008)

I had a pack-rat once. About 3 years ago. Did the same thing. I caught that dude in a live cage


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## tefinn (Sep 23, 2011)

I don't have rats or mice anymore…


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Andy-If I have to choose between a mongoose or a Jack Russell, I'm going with the dog. That particular breed might be just as hyper as I am, so we'd be a good match.

@Gary-I hope that either the snake or me catches and eliminates the rat family before they start moving their furniture into my shop.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@tefinn-I've tried those stick baits before, and my experience is that the mice just LOVE that stuff, but it doesn't kill them. I think they don't leave because they are waiting for me to give them more rectangular food blocks.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

Don, Try the bottle on the stick over a bucket of water trap. Baited with peanut butter. I'll try to find a link for ya.

But the Jack Russell is more fun!


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ-T4GVeZQAdwqfvEwSKSiWxittGw70Z-x696zj8HRce9-hdh8o:besurvival.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/the-perfect-mouse-trap-4.jpg

This one uses a can rather than a bottle.


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## DonBroussard (Mar 27, 2012)

@Andy-I had not seen that setup before. It looks pretty simple. I could set that up in my electrolysis tank and shock him right before he drowns in the bath.


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