Thank you, Jess. That is EXACTLY how I am. I know the pictures of snakes won’t hurt me, but I HATE them, I can’t stand it, and it terrifies me.
I don’t care how harmless garters are, I just don’t want them around me. Ever.
Garters can be some of the most beautiful animals out there. We’ve got Common Garters - three bright greenish yellow stripes and between them, a dark, velvety black with a double row of dark red dots. Magnificent.
My own snakes are a Black Rat Snake and a Leucistic Texas Rat Snake. (She’s pure white with purplish-blue eyes.) They’re both born in captivity and totally hand tame.
I’d go with making the yard unattractive. Garters love water and about the only thing they love more than water is blackberry bushes. Short grass and a dry yard ought to get rid of 'em pretty quick. A warning though - your slug population will probably go up.
About the rattlesnakes. Our Massasauga at work likes to go up into his flourescent light and hide. I’d keep an eye on warm and narrow places around the house and especially any sheds, garages etc. You do not want to mess with one of the little beggers. Ours is very dark and not at all easy to spot when his light is off. It doesn’t rattle much either, at least compared to the Pacific Rattler.
Perhaps you could try fencing the area with slick, painted boards or maybe that chain-link that has plastic slats inserted in it? Three feet would be more than enough for garters. Make sure the fence is slightly undergound at the bottom. If there’s no water to smell they probably won’t bother trying to get in. Keep the place free of mice, goldfish ponds and slugs too. They also eat earthworms but you can’t really do much about that.
Oh, and before you kill anything, check out the local by-laws. You might also want to make sure nothing local is endangered or threatened. Some places pack a hefty fine for that kind of thing.
Great job everyone. Mrs. Rancid read the thread last night, and has officially been convinced to wait and see how things go before going on a killing spree.
Many of you even had her laughing!
Thanks again.