Copperheads overrunning my property! Long

Have ya'll been there for years and all of a sudden having copperhead issues? or did you just move into copperhead habitat and discovering the local residents?

I'd lived at my place for ten years before actually spending a summer here... that first summer I realized I lived in timber rattler and copperhead habitat... I relocated the timber rattlers to some better habitat. Relocated only one copperhead, the rest had to be dispatched, as they were too ornery and didn't like getting caught. I had two weenie dogs that loved trailing copperheads up and baying them.

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Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Seneca
Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival. W. Edwards Deming

We moved here almost exactly a year ago. I knew they were out there, especially with the back part of the property being partially wooded. The previous owners mentioned seeing some in the back, but I did not think they would be such an issue near the house. I am also finding that Louisiana copperheads and Texas copperheads are very different. In 20+ years living and having horses in copperhead country in LA, I never saw a horse or dog get bit. They are very reclusive and non-aggressive. Here in TX, they seem more aggressive and stand their ground. Like I mentioned, my horse got bit and if he was not smart enough to stay out of strike range my LGD would have been also.

If they were not near the house and I did not have animals at stake, I would live and let live (I'm not brave enough to relocate them! Just barely brave enough to kill!) But when they are so close to the house and putting my animals in danger, they gotta go!

I am not a gun person, but I could learn if it meant killing the buggers a little easier and more safely. What would you all recommend for a gun novice as far as snake dispatch?

Forget live and let live, that's for the rest of the snakes. Copperheads and moccasins I just kill. It's not like they are a threatened species.

A Machete? You can off a snake with a C02 powered pellet pistol or a little .22 pistol, I wouldn't waste ammo or want to walk my property packing heat all the time. I prefer a .45 colt revolver though if I was going to..

Snakes are hard to hit with a gun for the most part, and a waste of ammo.

Wear good heavy boots, easier to just mash their heads with a good stick or pin em and cut it off with a belt knife...

Some cats are snake killing machines, others want nothing to do with them.

Best to keep things clear by the house, no lumber or brush piles or junk close to the house they would want to set up house in. Keep things mowed clear and kept up and less will be there. And I would likely go on a hunt for em to clear em out once in a while, and wear good boots when outside and always look first where you put your hand when it close to the ground. Most bites are from folks reaching into shrubs, grass etc. or picking up lumber or brush piles without looking. My nieces boyfriend just got nailed in the hand by one last year doing just that, picking up lumber that had been stacked in the yard for a while.

Leave rat snakes around, as the copperheads will move on if there is no food. If you have plenty of snakes and cats and such keeping mice down the will leave or starve if you don't kill them first.

Funny but I live to the north side of Blue Creek Ridge. To the south, across Pumpklin Creek Road is Pumpkin Creen Ridge. I've heard several people tell me Pumpkin Creek Ridge is infested with rattlesnakes, while Blue Creek Ridge isn't.

When I was a teen I saw a large hog kill a good sized rattler. They woud tease it into striking and then quickly turn their sides so any bite when into the fat. Eventually the snake wore itself out and the pig grabbed it behind the head and went off to find a place to bury it for a couple of days.

http://www.copperheadsnake.net/

My next door neighbor had a bunch of junk on the back of their property a few years ago. When they finally got around to cleaning it up, they found a whole bunch of baby copperheads under some trash they were cleaning up. She told me later that they scattered before they could kill them. (Something tells me she ran away and came back later when they were gone) Anyway, we never saw any at all. We happened to be boarding some potbelly pigs for another neighbor who sold his farm and was in the process of buying another farm. We had them for about 8 months. If the snakes had gone directly to my property from where she saw them, they would have had to cross through the pens of 17 pigs.

Since you're not allowed to have pigs, which don't smell that bad if you don't feed them any meat, I would try guineas. I've seen one eat a frog. The only snakes I've ever seen on our property in the last 11 years have been black snakes.

We don't have pigs anymore, but reading this thread makes me want to get some!

You might want to look into snake shot for a handgun. It's like a shotgun round. The shot spreads when fired, giving you a better chance of hitting your target at close range.

I just use our little .22 rifle to shoot snakes and so does hubby. We've never had any trouble hitting one.

Hubby has also used a rotten stick in the woods and a screwdriver in the barn (closest thing he could grab) to kill a cottonmouth.

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We have them too up by our pond and I've dispatched 2 of them with an old 20 guage shot gun. I think they are feeding on our over abundance of frogs but we just are careful when reaching into the woodpile or more currently harvesting from the garden. If it makes ya feel any better DW was weeding one of the flower beds by the house today and found a Missouri Tarantula the size of her hand. Shy creatures and all by they are big and hairy and will give you quite a start if you come face to face with one (we did not kill it).

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the man at the feed store said lyme is a good snake repellent

If anyone lives in north central west virginia and has a snake problem I will come and rid you of them. Non Lethal to boot have kept copperhead and tons of non venomous snakes before.

Snake shot for sure. You might advertise on craigslist to see if anyone has black racers or other non-poisonous snakes that are aggressive.

I think Racers are the the only non-Ven snake that makes me a lil jumpy whipy lthings.

I read on here or somewhere years ago how to repel snakes when they start to move closer to the house and yards. They said to use lawn mowers and chainsaws. Start the chainsaw and set it on the ground while it is running. Move around the yard. The shaking of the ground is supposed to really help in keeping them away. Maybe you could find some black snakes to purchase? Would be great if you could. They keep all the other snakes away, especially when they are really large.

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Get a .22lr pistol, become proficient with it. Burn a brick or two of ammo and learn how to use it instinctively. With 'birdshot' rounds, you're relying on luck (pray and spray). Get good with a .22, and your master of your domain.

Right at bedtime, I heard a chicken crying out... put on my sandals, grabbed a light and the .22 pistol. Finally looked up in a tree and found an 'eyeball'. Light, .22, eyeball... fire... eyeball, attached to possum, on ground. Walked over to sleeping anatolian and kicked him hard... sheesh! Lazy arrghhed dog. I lost my all purpose guard dog year before last, and out of a dozen or two candidates, you'd think someone (dog) would step forward!

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Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity. Seneca
Learning is not compulsory... neither is survival. W. Edwards Deming

I hate poisonous snakes. Have been spoiled since I moved to the NW, just have Garter snakes here, which is fine with me.
(Dealt with Rattlers when DH was stationed in San Diego years, what a pain and they were all over the place, couldn't even pick up the trash can, without having one under there.)

But will be moving to Essex/Caroline County, VA soon, and I have heard they have a number of poisonous snakes, including the copperhead. yuck......

My Dad said Turkey's are the best thing to get rid of Snakes. When he was a child in the Green Mountain area of NC, the family farms all had Turkeys.
As soon as I can, plan on getting a few Turkeys!

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Shari

When I lived in Alabama, our place was the only one in several miles that never had and copperheads or water moccasins ..I did run over a baby rattler one day in the driveway though..

What we DID have were several huge black snakes..I mean the big ones..6feet +..Get yourself some black snakes and let them wipe out the venomous snakes..I didn't mind the trade-off..black snakes would often get into my coop and help themselves to eggs..IMHO, better than having copperheads in the coop.

Go to the local dog pound/shelter and adopt a couple of terriers. All my neighbors are having snake problems this year. I'm not, I have Scottish Terriers & they are the best snake dogs you've ever seen!

Where can I get some black snakes, lol! Are they sold somewhere for just this purpose (if not, that is not a bad idea for a business!)

As others have said, get some black snakes..We had copperheads here when we moved in, but now I haven't seen any in over 10 years.. The only thing I see/find now are shedded skins for the black snakes...

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Yep black snakes are country folks' best friend.

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