Almost stepped on a rattler today

[brewer12345]

Opening day of small game season today, so my buddy and I went out. We have had a hot dry summer and today was on the warm side. I have never seen a snake while hunting, so I wasn't watching for them. Today I got within 3 feet of one and it went into defensive strike stance. I avoided soiling myself and the snake crawled down a small hole. Those of you who have this as a more common threat than I do, what precautions do you take?

[Tatume]

Wear leather boots at least ankle high. Ankles are most likely to be bitten. Never put your hands or feet where you cannot see. Step on, not over, rocks and logs.

[richhodg66]

Wear leather boots at least ankle high. Ankles are most likely to be bitten. Never put your hands or feet where you cannot see. Step on, not over, rocks and logs.

Good advice, can't add much.

I've lived in Kansas more than 20 years now and have done a lot of fishing, hunting and camping here and have come across just one venomous snake. They just don't seem common, though non venomous varieties abound.

I grew up in S.C. and have lived and worked in west Texas and southern Oklahoma quite a bit. All of those places you can bank on coming across venomous snakes if you spend much time outdoors. At Fort Bliss certain times of the year, rattle snake encounters were like a multiple time a day thing. They don't get very big, but there are a lot of them and they like to crawl under equipment and anything set down on the ground so you had to be careful.

[Texas by God]

Tatum gives good advice. Here we have 3 of the 4 venomous US native snakes. Some years we don't see any rattlers, some years we see a lot. Copperheads are seen every year. Cotton mouths are actually aggressive when disturbed but they are mostly in the river nowadays. The explosion of feral hogs seem to have reduced their population dramatically.

[MrWolf]

About a month ago my dog was barking kinda funny. Went out back door and dog was looking at me barking. Looked down at a 2+ foot copperhead at my feet. Good thing I leave my duck boots at door as if I had stepped out barefoot it would not have been fun.

[brewer12345]

I generally wear leather boots when hiking to avoid cactus spikes in my feet, so I am good there.

[Char-Gar]

Here is Deep South Texas, we have some big and not so big rattlers. We also don't have the cold weather needed to drive them into a den, therefore they are a year around problem.

There is only one snake country rule: Don't put your feet or hands anywhere your eyes have not gone first.

[marlin39a]

I got a lot of Diamondbacks in my area. That is always on my mind when I walk. I almost stepped on one a couple years back. He was coiled, but would not rattle. I also had one come after me once. Part of desert life.

[sigep1764]

I do a lot of weed eating and cutting up of downed trees at my Grandparents house near a lake here in MO. There are copperhead incidents every year. I always wear jeans, tall boots, and an NAA Mini revolver loaded with snake/rat shot from CCI. Ive only ever had to shoot one snake. Almost stepped on it, didn't hear it with the weedeater going.

[MyFlatline]

Here in west central Florida , we wear certified snake proof boots almost everywhere.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

The first time I heard a rattler the hair stood up on the back of my neck. Here in California we have two types of rattlers. One is the Western Diamondback which carries a Hemotoxin which is bad enough but we also have a rattler referred to as the Mojave green which carries not only the Hemotoxin that attacks the blood cells but a Neurotoxin which attacks the nerve system. A double whammy you might say. Bad actor, to be sure.

[Boogieman]

I nearly stepped on a rattler on the path rom my house to my shop, he died. we have 2 kinds on venomous snakes here, the ones I don't see and dead ones.

[smokeywolf]

Dad had a friend who farmed alfalfa out near McKittrick, CA. We had permission to shoot jack rabbits on his place. I was about 10 years old. Walking up a small sage brush covered hill next the the alfalfa fields, had a Colt 22 Scout on my hip and a model 06 Winchester pump in my left hand. Looked down just a split second before lowering my foot and saw a small (about 30 inch) rattler right were my foot was about to land. If I'd panicked I could have easily shot myself in the foot. Very slowly brought my foot back and stepped away and, looking back on it, probably should not have shot the snake, but did draw the SA Colt 22 which had shot loads in it, and shot the snake.

[WheelgunConvert]

The irony is that the snakes are where the eating is good, the same reason you’re hunting or fishing there.

Bond ranger with #4 stays on my hip in the yard and the woods this time of year.

[Hardcast416taylor]

A friends Brother bought a new house in a new sub on the outskirts of Gainseville in Fl. A neighbor of the Brother was hitting whiffle golf balls on his new sod lawn when he did a quick back step and yelp. He got his `Big Bertha` driver club from his bag and proceeded to `drive` the head off an eastern diamonback that had been disturbed by the earth movers and such. The animal removal people came to take the dead snake that measured just shy of 8` - minus his head.Robert

[RED BEAR]

i had to kill a black snake while casting last year. the darned thing came up and tryed to bite me. i put him out of the garage a few minutes later he was back so i took him out and put him over the fence at back of yard about 15 minutes later he was back again. i usually don't like to kill nonvenous snakes but three strikes and your out.

[Bookworm]

Years ago I was hunting alone, out eastern Oklahoma way, muzzleloader season. I was back off in the woods a good ways, following a game trail. I heard the rattle, looked down at a coiled, ready to strike rattler. It wasn't 2feet away.

As I backed slowly away, I remember thinking "if I get bit out here, I'm in deep doodoo". It all happened so fast....

[MaryB]

Rattlers are very rare here but some of my fishing spots involve walking the granite outcroppings to get to the river. One spot we fished was down a steep granite slope(almost a wall) to an outcropping right above river level. 10' climb down. I got down, heard a rattle, and my friend with me said I levitated up the wall. Big rattler sunning itself on the end of the rock outcropping. Reported it to the DNR and they went down and moved the snake because a LOT of kids use that spot to fish and swim from. From then on we looked all over before climbing down! Used to see them out on top of the granite getting to the river but that was a first right down by the water... they seemed to like laying near the prickly pear cactus that grows here in MN...

[Hardcast416taylor]

I have a friend that used to host an outdoor show on a PBS station here in Michigan. He had been assured that there were no rattlers of any kind here in lower Mich. by our DNR. My friend was fishing under an old bridge on a gravel side road when he almost stepped on a rattler. He killed it with a rock and bagged it up. He drove 25 miles to the local DNR office and put the bag on the lobby desk and asked the wide eyed officer to identify just what this was. It measured almost 40" long with a now flat head. This incident happened 10 years ago back in `08.Robert

[jmort]

A friends Brother bought a new house in a new sub on the outskirts of Gainseville in Fl. A neighbor of the Brother was hitting whiffle golf balls on his new sod lawn when he did a quick back step and yelp. He got his `Big Bertha` driver club from his bag and proceeded to `drive` the head off an eastern diamonback that had been disturbed by the earth movers and such. The animal removal people came to take the dead snake that measured just shy of 8` - minus his head.Robert

That is one extremely dangerous snake. People keep parroting the myth that small "baby" snakes are more dangerous. No, wrong. Big snake is a big problem. You might only last 20 minutes. I did know a lady who was bit by a small one in her garage and the Life Flight and hospital bills were over $100,000. The big ones have large stores of venom and if they unload may God help you. Even a Life Flight might not be enough. I have killed around 100 rattlesnakes including Mojave Greens. Only ones that were near the house. In Texas you could probably kill that many in a couple weeks or less if you look for them. Took me 12 years, but I was not looking for them, they found me. Closest I got was around 6 inches. Just about stepped on it.

[OS OK]

It sorta gives ya the shivers just thinking about stepping on a rattler...


https://i.imgur.com/xrImYSL.jpg?1

This one is missing the business end of his head due to a pass through of the .45ACP.

[bayjoe]

228265
I was working in Iowa and my wife killed these 2 by our front door
And we live at almost 6,000 feet elevation

[Riverpigusmc]

Here is Deep South Texas, we have some big and not so big rattlers. We also don't have the cold weather needed to drive them into a den, therefore they are a year around problem.

There is only one snake country rule: Don't put your feet or hands anywhere your eyes have not gone first.

This. And snake boots. My house is surrounded by woods, I have coral snakes and eastern diamondbacks in my yard at times

[TCLouis]

bayjoe
6,000 asl ain't even high enough elevation to be snattlerake free.

[bob208]

a while back I was moving some tin. picked one piece up an there was a snake about 1 1/2 feet long. looked a little strange deep copper color arrow shaped head with a deep copper spot on its head. yep a copperhead first one I ever ran into in the wild.

[Lloyd Smale]

yup there down there but pretty rare. One good thing about the UP is its just to cold for poisonous snakes and spiders. doesnt break my heart. I cant stand them!!
I have a friend that used to host an outdoor show on a PBS station here in Michigan. He had been assured that there were no rattlers of any kind here in lower Mich. by our DNR. My friend was fishing under an old bridge on a gravel side road when he almost stepped on a rattler. He killed it with a rock and bagged it up. He drove 25 miles to the local DNR office and put the bag on the lobby desk and asked the wide eyed officer to identify just what this was. It measured almost 40" long with a now flat head. This incident happened 10 years ago back in `08.Robert

[LandSurveyor]

In my business, and especially here in the Deep South, this is all too common. To this day, I have a rattler skin in my office.

Snake boots are good advice but they can be expensive and not necessarily the most comfortable boots for walking. My last pair came from a site called snake boots.com. They have a good selection. Gaiters are less expensive and you can wear them over your favorite footgear. Look for the kind with a "tongue" over the instep. The hard plastic kind bang on the instep.

The ones I came across at work usually succumbed to a bush ax but a pistol with snakeshot is better. Avoid rim fires, even 22 magnum. Not enough shot for effective pattern density.

Smaller shot is better. Less chance of ricochet and again, pattern density. Don't worry about penetration; at the 10' max effective range, even the tiny shot will do the job. My favorite is the commercial 9mm with the blue cup. They appear to hold #12s and a lot of them. 38/357 and larger calibers seem to be loaded with #9s.

I believe Speer still sells the shot cups in several calibers.

Whichever you opt for, try them in your gun to see if it delivers an effective pattern.

Finally, awareness is your best defense and remember that many people get bitten because they saw the snake and then messed with it. If possible, back away and go elsewhere. Don't go after the snake.

[jmort]

"Avoid rim fires, even 22 magnum. Not enough shot for effective pattern density."

Absolutly not true. I had a dedicated Rossi single shot .22 mag rifle as my dedicated snake/pest gun. Out of the approximately 100 rattlesnake I killed, it accounted for about half. The .22 mag in a rifle with CCI shot will destroy a snake's head. Body shots were fatal, but not immediate. No further action needed. When I used a round-point shovel to kill ths snake by severing the head, I always had to do some follow-up head chopping so the dogs were safe. The round-point shovel is perfect for snake killing and picking up the left-overs.

[Down South]

I've terminated many rattlesnakes and copperheads in the woods around here through the yrs. This is the time of the year here they start moving, I assume looking for a den for the winter?

[nicholst55]

Rules to avoid snakes:

1. LOOK where you're going - walking, about to walk, sit, or whatever. A snake may have already taken up residence there.
2. Wear snake gaiters when out and about.

I quickly developed these two rules when we lived at Yuma Proving Ground, AZ. AZ has 13 species of rattlesnakes, and Yuma County has 6 out of the 13. They are prevalent on and around YPG, and can get ANYWHERE. During the 3 years we lived in our last house, we killed one rattlesnake, and had two relocated from our small yard, right on the edge of the desert. Those are just the ones we saw! The guys who worked out on the gun positions and other test areas saw rattlers nearly every day. One of my coworkers had one in his office. The Biologists assured us that we had all walked over the top of snakes without seeing them.

[rancher1913]

around here they don't rattle any more. somehow along the way there was one or two that did not use their rattle for whatever reason and all the ones that rattled got killed so now we have a goodly number that make no noise until they strike. we are working on thinning their numbers.

[CLAYPOOL]

2001 - near Bad lands South Dakota, Shooting Prairie dogs. 35 back to Kadoka, 60 or so to rapid City. ( Snake Med's there). Buddy walks down 2 track. standing there he says do you hear that rattler behind you. I said sure. lets go bet him. I say, go ahead he's been back there all morning. By the way you can see the ground there in short grass Prairie... He ain't bothering me...

[CLAYPOOL]

Can't see the ground

[wgr]

Here in Indiana they are protected( rattlers)that is . will plain high leather boots stop a rattler bite

[Dale53]

This thread brings to mind a situation I ran into a number of years ago. I and my family were staying in a cabin at a Northern Ohio State Park. We were hiking along a popular trail not far from our cabin. We saw some agitated people just ahead of us. When we got to the area of the small gathering, I discovered a small child backed up against a big tree, terrified. There was a medium size copperhead snake coiled and ready to strike the boy. There were several adults, including his father that were paralyzed with fear watching the thing unfold. I could hardly believe what I was seeing. I quickly, as in QUICK, looked around, saw a branch off a tree close by. I grabbed the branch, jumped and smashed the snake killing it instantly.

I had to really control myself. I really wanted to slap the adults, but didn't. I kept my mouth shut, but it was not easy. I could hardly believe the inaction on the part of those adults. MY aged grandmother would have taken that snake out INSTANTLY! I mean that.

Oh well, all's well that ends well, they say...

FWIW
Dale53

[Riverpigusmc]

around here they don't rattle any more. somehow along the way there was one or two that did not use their rattle for whatever reason and all the ones that rattled got killed so now we have a goodly number that make no noise until they strike. we are working on thinning their numbers.

feral hogs will eat a rattler in a second...and feral hog population is exploding...and the rattlers are learning....

[jmort]

Here in Indiana they are protected( rattlers)that is . will plain high leather boots stop a rattler bite

Protected means kill it and do not talk about it.
There are a lot of snake boots and lower leg protectors that will keep you safe

[LandSurveyor]

"Avoid rim fires, even 22 magnum. Not enough shot for effective pattern density."

Absolutly not true. I had a dedicated Rossi single shot .22 mag rifle as my dedicated snake/pest gun. Out of the approximately 100 rattlesnake I killed, it accounted for about half. The .22 mag in a rifle with CCI shot will destroy a snake's head. Body shots were fatal, but not immediate. No further action needed. When I used a round-point shovel to kill ths snake by severing the head, I always had to do some follow-up head chopping so the dogs were safe. The round-point shovel is perfect for snake killing and picking up the left-overs.

I guess I never thought of using one with a rifle. For a while, Marlin, I think, made a smoothbore bolt rifle called a Garden Gun. I don't recall if it was in 22M or just LR. In my case, carrying the pistol was a matter of convenience since I was carrying other equipment and a long gun would have been unhandy.

[Idaho45guy]

I used to be a park ranger and patrolled 130 miles of the Snake River on the Idaho/Washington border.

Part of the job included dispatching rattlesnakes that showed up in recreation areas.
No firearms allowed so I had to use a shovel. Killed a few.
One time, me and another ranger were on jet boat patrol way down river. We we're inspecting a riparian area that was about ten acres of tall grass and sage brush. There was a trail that went around the edge and we stayed on it to avoid the snake filled grass.
We were half way around when we got an emergency call and had to get to the boat ASAP.
We could backtrack on the trail, which would take 15 minutes, or cross the field in two, if we sprinted. In shorts.
We chose the field.
Got to the boat and I had fang drag marks down my shin from a rattler trying to get me.
Still have the scar.

[Love Life]

My brother and I brought a baby rattler home when we were kids. Mom gave us a whooping with a wooden spoon. We still tried to catch them after that, but never brought one home again!!

[popper]

How do you hold a NAA mini22 and get a shot on a rattler or any snake! IIRC it is NOT rated for snake shot.

[Down South]

I can afford snake boots now and wore them the other day when I went squirrel hunting. I remember a time many yrs ago while squirrel hunting, I saw a copper head in front of me. Only had my work Red Wings boots on. My thoughts were, I can dispatch this copper head with the heel of my boot. I stomped the copper head and felt something strike the side of my right boot. I was another copper head. I dispatched that one with my 12 Ga.

[Down South]

feral hogs will eat a rattler in a second...and feral hog population is exploding...and the rattlers are learning....
Yup, you be right. A hog is a snakes worst nightmare. Also Road Runners. I once saw a Roar Runner going down an old country road with a snake in it's beak. I don't know what snake it had as it must have have doing at least 20 mph ahead of me then taking a hard right into the brush.

I once hunted deer on a ranch in Tx. They had a severe hog problem plus I saw at least 4 Road Runners that day while we where out riding around. The owner told me to watch for snakes while hunting. I laughed and said, you don't have any snake problems with the hogs and Road Runners that you have.

[jmort]

How do you hold a NAA mini22 and get a shot on a rattler or any snake! IIRC it is NOT rated for snake shot.

I owned a .22 LR/mag convertable NAA
It can be done. Been there, done that

[tctender]

The naa mini 22 will work with shot cartridges. I have killed several rattlers with mine.Works fine long as you hit them on top of head. Does not work as good if he is looking at you and you shoot toward his face.They can be anywhere around here along with other dangerous snakes.