After my un-nap I leash up the doggies for a walk.
We get to the pond and I unhook Betsy the Beagle and she zooms off to chase an aroma.
The Chihuahuas on her heels. I wander around the edge of the pond and put the Yorkie on the ground she sniffs and finds her potty place.
I sat down. And whistled for Betsy, she yaps back. Clearly not ready to come back to me.
Me and the Yorkie move on down a trail.
I step in a clearing and see a little snake. Solid green. I reach and grab it. I’m thinking I’ll carry it home and show the kids. They would enjoy that.
I changed hands and pick up the Yorkie and put her in my pocket.
Turn my attention to the snake. It’s very cute. About the size of a pencil.
I whistled. Betsy starts back toward me.
I start walking again.
Dammit! The little SOB green snake bit me.
I pried his needle fangs off my thumb. And chunked him as far as I could.
Apparently he did not relish meeting the Grandwrex.
Many years back a new family with 3 boys, median age 8, moved in across the street. I’d not met them yet, but the boys marched up the street with one holding something behind his back. All of a sudden he whips out this garter snake and says see what we found. I’m guessing they expected me to jump back and yell, but I took the snake which promptly bit the web of my hand. I tapped it on the head and said “bad snake”. I hope they were impressed.
Well, not necessarily. If you can identify local snakes, you can learn a bit. When I was a child in Ontario, my buddies and I used to catch garter snakes–totally harmless creatures, but interesting to feel in your hands, as they tried to move. You could feel their belly plates trying to move them somewhere. We’d pick them up, and they’d slither, and open their mouth and stick out their tongue, and we got to see it close up. Of course, we always gently put the snake down after a few minutes, and it would go about its business. But it was much more of a learning experience about snakes, than looking at them through the glass at the zoo.
When I was about 9 or so some friends and I were out playing in the woods behind our subdivision and found a garter snake that looked like it had been nicked by a lawnmower or something. Small cuts across its back along the whole length of its body (a little over 12"). Bobby decided to pick it up to examine it more closely, but the snake was not amenable to being handled and promptly bit Bobby on his thumb. Suddenly that snake went from being a harmless garter snake to being “maybe it’s venomous, we’d better take it home and get it identified by an adult to be sure!” So Bobby took off one of his rubber boots, we dropped the snake inside and folded over the top for transport. Needless to say, Bobby’s mom was not real happy when we got to their house and Bobby dumped the angry garter snake on the middle of the kitchen table. But she sure did dance enthusiastically!
When I was about 12yo, standing on the porch, watching for the mailman.
I noticed a stick when I came out.
I was barefoot, of course.
I looked down and the stick was on top of my foot, and, egads, moving!
Alarmed, l kicked it to left field, where the dog was sleeping. It landed on the driveway. My dog jumped straight up into the air. She had cartoon poking-out eyes. She was a very lazy hound dog mix. That’s the fastest I ever saw her move.
She was such an embarrassment to the family and my Cul-de-sac cred.
I assure you I’m not usually so brave.
I don’t like wriggly fishing worms.
It was such a tiny thing and alarmingly green. I knew it wasn’t venemous.
Now I know they will bite.
You’ve been crying out for weeks for Cecil to come to you, and when he finally heeds your cries and gives you a little love bite as a gift…
.
.
.
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You heave him across the pond!
Picking up a snake anywhere if you cannot identify the species is a bad idea.
There was just a series of pictures on Reddit of a little kid with a snake he found. His buddy took pictures. I immediate recognized it as a copperhead. There were 3 or 4 pictures of the boy holding the snake, then a few pictures in the ER of the kid being treated.
