Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Care to join me for some rattlesnake wrangling?

It was around 7 o'clock Tuesday morning. I had been in the barn tending to the herd
since 6:30. George walked over to the end stall to poop, 
then planted himself next to the back door to take a nap. 
I fetched the wheelbarrow and moved into the stall to clean up his mess.

That's when I saw the rattlesnake for the first time. He was all coiled up like a cinnamon roll,
basking in the morning sun, not two inches away from George's left front hoof.
George was oblivious, the snake was oblivious, and I was incredulous.
I asked George to walk toward me and he wouldn't.
I pulled on his grazing muzzle to lead him toward me, but that wasn't happening either.
Meanwhile, the snake stayed all coiled up without a care in the world.
Finally, I lured George away with a cookie.
The snake slithered between the stall wall and the wire kick-panel.
I closed doors and gates to keep everybody out of the stall, then ran like hell to the garage
to fetch the snake pole, with a brief stop to pick up the GoPro because:
a) what's the point of having a head-cam if you're not going to use it at a moment like this?
and b) I knew some of you would want to come along for the adventure.





42 comments:

  1. You are a brave woman. Much braver than I would be.

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  2. I can't even imagine. You are one brave woman.

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  3. ...and here in western NC people would have killed it without a second thought. I read a report recently linking the rise in tick borne diseases to the reduction in the snake population, especially rattlesnakes. Mother nature thanks you.

    Emily in NC

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  4. I recognized him...it's the same one! Maybe take him further away this time....

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  5. Yikes! You are a brave woman - nerves of steel.

    Laurie

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  6. Good on you! Especially for not holding a grudge after "the bite". Of course, the lid being on the other side of the box about gave me a heart attack and then you let the snake loose before you had the lid in hand :-o. Nicely done!

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  7. Thanks for taking me with you. If I were really there, I would've wanted to kill him, after that whole Hank incident. If I see them on the road or on the trails, I let them go along their merry ole way. If they are near the house, they will be a hatband.

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  8. Oh my, you are brave indeed. Snakes just freak me out.

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  9. The things you do to entertain us :)

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    Replies
    1. Michelle from Vancouver7/29/15, 7:41 AM

      I was thinking the same thing !

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  10. Well done, snake wrangler, well done!!! Mikey will be so proud! :)

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  11. Carson! You're going to need an automatic feed from that Go Pro ... So IF anything were to happen - we out here - your cyber pals - could alert authorities as to where they needed to go to help you out! ;) That was really interesting. Around here we hear the word rattlesnake and I'm sure we all start to think along the lines of fire breathing dragons that would chase us around the woods and eat us for breakfast! And there you are - saving one - BEFORE you get your coffee - let alone your breakfast. You rock. BIG TIME! Hopefully the rest of your day was less eventful.

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  12. Loving your new camera!

    I talked to you through the whole video, especially when you were walking around the container to get the lid. How did you know he wouldn't leap out at you? Well, I guess you know rattlesnakes by now way better than the rest of us. Gosh, I need a cup of coffee now.

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    1. I did the same thing! I would have put the lid on with the snake pole too!

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  13. Oh my stars.........I am having a hissy fit and I'm safe and snakefree here in my dining room. You are such a super woman. My hats off to you dear lady.

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  14. Wow, as a snake wrangler you win the rodeo prize! Done like a real pro. I'm so glad you move them instead of killing them. They may not be our chosen BFFs but they do some good stuff in nature. Just not near-nature! Thanks for thinking of your Go Pro for us!

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  15. I suppose you've seen a few of these by now ;) but I would have peed my pants. Also, my dog really enjoyed this video. I think he was cheering you on. Haha.

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  16. Linda, you made my day! courageous you are! maybe you could wear the gopro as soon as you go oustide everyday! feel exhausted now!

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  17. Is Johnny ok? when I see snake in your place, my thoughts go straight to Johnny because I keep thinking he is the most exposed to snakes

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    1. JCC is just fine. He was eating in the feed room when all this occurred - I closed off the cat door so he would stay there until the snake was gone.

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    2. Thank you. I was told that there are catdoors which open only to your own cat, him having of course a little device around his neck. would you reckon this would be a good/safe idea for Johnny? (so that no snake gets into the catdoor while Johnny is sleeping there because I still think that the beautiful little female did not leave the feedroom)

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  18. The only thing that would have improved this would have been a fake Australian accent. Or a voiceover by the Mutual of Omaha guy. Well done!

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    1. haha! I will have to re-watch with that in mind!!

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  19. I need an adult beverage and it is only 9:42am on a Wednesday. I am glad you said you couldn't use a gun in a small barn; I could see how that would be a dangerous situation. I do not think that would have stopped me. I imagine bullets flying and pinging off every surface if that little incident happened to me. You are so patient and calm. Rock on you brave woman!

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  20. Can only imagine what it felt like when the adrenalin wore off. Skilled, brave, and efficient. And little old Georgie Porgie was just going to nap with the snake. Loviing the GoPro.

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  21. well that was scary!!! Time to adopt a mongoose at the 7MSN (Do you think they would hang aound?)

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    1. Oh, Riki Tiki Tavi would be happy to help out, I'm sure :-)

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  22. "Gotcha!" Ha. Swift, smooth, and utterly cool rattler wrangling there! Ethel's claim of having recognized "the same one" makes me think that you could outfit those guys with little radio collars to better detect repeat offenders. They would look really cute, too; wish I could make a drawing for you... ;-)
    Thanks for thinking of a) and b)!!

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  23. An American in Tokyo7/29/15, 6:11 PM

    Omigosh!!! My heart was beating as I was watching you!!!

    Keep the battery on the GoPro charged up! I like seeing these adventures!

    (How about painting some nail polish on the rattle to see if it's the same one that keeps coming back? Maybe you could do it while you still have the noose around his neck and while he's still in the box??)

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    1. I tried the snake-marking thing and was informed that it was harmful to the snake, so I gave up that idea (http://www.the7msnranch.com/2012/06/practice-makes-perfect.html). I hope this guy will not come back, though - I released him about four miles from here.

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    2. An American in Tokyo7/30/15, 5:49 PM

      Oh, I didn't know it was harmful to the snake! In that case, I hope he lives a fruitful life AWAY from your ranch! =D

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    3. An American in Tokyo7/30/15, 5:52 PM

      By the way, did you ever see that snake again? The little one you tagged in 2012?

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  24. You should have did away with it, it might find the barn a nice cool place to rest and come right back and bite someone.

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  25. So, I guess one difference between you and me is that I would have put the snake in a box, and then put that box in a box and duct-taped it, and then put that box in another box and duct-taped it, and then I would have put all that in a trailer attached to the ATV with a lot of space between the trailer and the ATV and with a wide screen at the back of the ATV, in case the snake escaped and decided to go after me. Can you tell I'm afraid of snakes?

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  26. And all that before your morning coffee? Ah-mazing. Should have watched the video this morning instead of near bedtime ... not. gonna. sleep. now. [hate snakes]

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  27. Loved the running commentary, Carson. You're so cute. :)

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  28. Releasing wildlife here off of your property is against state law. You are lucky to live in a place where people understand.

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    1. no there is nobody to see, it is south of nowhere!

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  29. This is what happens when you miss a post … you put out a scary one. Didn’t even see the actual catch - you were so fast! But let me tell you, I was backing up from the screen here, and I am still having chills writing this. Eeeeeeehhhhhhhh!!

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  30. Carson, you gave me a heart attack when you said, "GOTCHA!" I nearly fell out of my chair! I need another cup of coffee now, or maybe a beer!

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  31. Probably time to relocate him to the snake cemetery ...so you don't have a big vet bill again.........or worse..... .

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  32. When I've read about your snake-wrangling in the past, I thought 'oh my god I don't think I could do that!" but seeing it on the go-pro, my reaction was OHMYGOD-I-COULD-NEVER-DO-THAT! You are definitely braver than I. Jean B.

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