Snake problem

[Riverratpete]

Got me a snake problem, have a nest of them living in my shrub arbavidae by the front door and they are really stinkin up the place, smells somewhere between Skunk and man funk. Can't see them except when it's warm out and they come lay down on top of the shrub to get warmed up. These are Gardner Snakes. Any ideas on how to get them out of there without tearing out the shrubs? don't care if they live or die but prefer that they just go find somewhere to den up. Someone said something about mothballs..any input or other ideas would be appreciated. Thanks!

[Farley]

a 12 guage. I hate those things.

[protrapper]

I would search the net on that one, I know nothing about snakes. You could catch them with a snake tongs. I would call a pest control guy and see what they would do.

[abens1078]

Rat Terrior, we had one that shook 'em senseless.

I'd try boiling water or just plain cold water and try and drown them out or boil them out. If you have a turkey fryer you should be able to boil a large pot right next to the suspected den.I'd try and drown 'em though, I've had countless hours of entertainment with a garden hose and a club. You just never knew what would come flying out of that hole, it was always a magical moment when a drenched critter would fly out of the hole.

The moisture should drive the snakes away even if they don't drown.

We've had the problem but never real close to the house. Usually we would get them near a barn or a pile of junk or fenceposts and we just hit the hole with some gasoline(cheaper to call exterminator now) and the snakes came out. Some frown on that now but a snake is a snake. Obviously you don't want your house to smell like gas and it would probably kill the bushes as well. A little bleach/water should kill the funk and it never hurt the grass real bad when we used it to burn night crawlers right out of the dirt........that was a goofy way to get worms before I knew better.

[Jackpine Rob]

We had a bunch of them a few years back. Our house sits on a sandy-soiled bit of high ground, and the rotten buggers were actually tunneling in alongside the foundation. They would find their way into the garage, and one even found its way into the foyer. Mrs. Jackpine was definitely not amused.

I declared open season, and placed a $1/head bounty. The kids cleared up the problem in no time. The preferred weapon was an ice chipper used for doing sidewalks with. Hockey sticks ran a close second.

Garter snakes are harmless, although the bite can be a little painful.

[Ely Lake Expert]

Quote:

---

a 12 guage. I hate those things.

---

I like that idea, my recommendation is go with a blow torch

[protrapper]

I thought of the water and bleach idea too. Might work, I know it wont hurt the shrub. I'll ask a A.D.C. friend of mine and see what he says.

[tex22]

Pack up and move, let'em have the house....I hate those things

[The Grebe]

I got an idea...I first thought of gun powder and maybe some gasoline, what about carbon monoxide?

Run a hose from the car to the snake hole and gas the suckers. If you or someone in the house starts getting woozy and your lips and fingernails start turning blue, maybe you should'nt do that?

Hey, heres another, get the area good and wet and plug one of them worm getters into the ground (Electricity) when the snakes come out, resort to the twelver! Don't get between the posts, or it's the Crappie dance for you!

[BLACKJACK]

You need to check around your foundation and eliminate any holes and/or piles of debris. They obviously have a den very close by, and now they're using the tree as a warming platform. You can kill them as you see them but until you eliminate the habitat for them, you'll continue to have a problem. At this point they'll be spreading out thru out the neighborhood, but come fall they'll be back looking for that den. Plug the holes.

[Riverratpete]

Lots of great ideas...Thanks, checked the web and they basically said the same thing but they did mention mothballs and getting rid of brush piles, etc, only problem is my back yard is pretty much woods that leads to marsh so it looks like open season.

[MrSenarighi]

If you go and just kill them, you will find yourself with an unwanted mouse/shrew etc. problem to take the place of the snakes. There are many civil ways to make the snakes relocate.

[Ole1855]

I had a huge colony of them living under the concrete front steps of my house, they didn't bother me but they'd scare the heck out of my daughter and anyone else that would come over. I put a bunch of mothballs down the hole along the basement wall they were living in and off they went, they really didn't like the smell of the mothballs. Problem is, the mothballs are so strong my basement smell like mothballs for the whole summer.

Ole

[CodyDawg]

"civil" ways? we are talking snakes here, not inlaws. i was gonna post something about cats here, but I guess I won't.

[WAG416]

Quote:

---

The preferred weapon was an ice chipper used for doing sidewalks with. Hockey sticks ran a close second.

---

Try an ice scoop also, I heard they work for Nuisance dogs

WAG

[Farley]

Quote:

---

Try an ice scoop also, I heard they work for Nuisance dogs

---

let's not start that one up again.

[tripper]

live trap them and take them to MrSenarighi's to drope off. just kidding

[The Grebe]

Call Steve Irwin.

[river-rat4]

Riverratpete-

To keep snakes out of your shrubs, mix up these two products listed below.

1 part builder's sand

1 part diatomaceous earth (DE) (garden center/nursery)

Mix together and sprinkle a 3" wide band around the area to be protected. Snakes won't cross this.

Seems a lot easier than gas, shotgun, gun powder, and boiling liquids, not that they might not work. It just sounded like it was rather close to your quarters.

Giv'r a try- RR4