Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Your Friendly Neighborhood Copperhead



Last night my husband was leaving the house to run a quick errand when he and a couple of neighbors who were walking their dog discovered a young Copperhead snake in the street. My husband came back inside and grabbed an old pillowcase to snag the reptile and escort it safely to the woods on the other side of our development.  I was in agreement with the neighbors, who offered a shovel to kill the snake! Copperheads are the most common venomous snake in the Southeast, but thankfully they are supposed to be the least toxic of the species and bites are rarely fatal. Either way, I'd still rather not have one nearby!  I have two small dogs, and while the bite may not be fatal to a human, I imagine it probably would be to a 4 pound Chihuahua.  Besides, I don't want to get bitten by ANYTHING, whether it would kill me or not!


I have to admit though, that snake was actually quite pretty!  I thought at first that it was a rattlesnake because it kept shaking its tail the way rattlesnakes do.  But a friend of ours identified it for us when DH sent him pictures, which is how I know it's actually a Copperhead. This little guy kept striking at the sides of the pillowcase my husband had trapped him in, and you could see the venom soaking into the cloth.  Kind of scary and cool at the same time! I can't believe I was brave enough to hold the pillowcase open while DH took the photos! It looks pretty angry in this picture.  I guess it's not too happy with his temporary home.  But it sure beats the sharp end of a shovel, little guy.


 Snake Spit! Check out the little spots of venom that soaked through the pillowcase:






Saturday, July 9, 2011

Oh, Blogger.

Oh, Blogger! What have you done to my dashboard?  It's hideous! :(