Wednesday, March 26, 2014

Not All Diamonds Are A Girls Best Friend...

Happy Hump Day peeps! How is your week so far? Mine... Busy but good.

Yesterday I danced with the vacuum cleaner, worked in the garden and harvested some sweet peas in addition to regular ranch chores. Monday I rocked the laundry basket and cleaned up after the weekend.... And killed a gigantic Diamondback Rattle snake!
Oh my gosh it was so scary and the music man was gone. I had no choice but to kill it. It was really close to the house and I actually heard the rattling from inside the kitchen! It was getting ready to strike Honey our mini schnauzer I think?  Not totally sure though because it had something in it's belly already, maybe a gopher? It was coiled up and rattling really loudly. Honey was only a couple feet from it and the girls were walking around close by.

Once I grabbed Honey bun and put her in the house the snake quieted down but the girls were eating grass almost on top of it. What the heck??? Didn't they care it was there? I called them, shook their scratch box and thankfully they came running and I was able to put them away. Do you think it got quiet because it was going to strike out at them? Nature is amazing.
Annie grab your gun! This thing was so big there was no way I was going after it with a shovel. It was three plus feet long, fat and had nine thick rattles. The photo above is without it's head, yuck. This was by far the biggest snake I've seen and had to deal with... Yikes!

I thought the 12 gauge was to big so I grabbed a pressurized pellet riffle. It took several shots and wasn't good. I had to get uncomfortably close to have the power I needed and it was to close for safety so we'll be loading up on 22 shells... I think it will be better and allow a nice cushion between me and their striking distance.

I am always amazed at how environments can change behavior. A few years ago when we left the city and moved out to the country I was petrified of bugs and seriously would have had a heart attack if I had to deal with a snake. These days I can handle the bugs, spiders and good snakes no problem. If you have a rattle or a red hour glass on your belly you have to go. Period. You're deadly and completely freak me out.

Snake season is now underway here and about a month early. Sadly they say it's going to be a really bad year for them due to our weather.   Living remotely is all about being prepared isn't it. I am learning so much even since moving to the ranch last summer.  I have already been weeding and trimming bushes that are in areas the animals and we are in. I have flat head shovels in all the work areas and porches.  Keeping the area clear is vital and I want to be able to see whats there before it seems me.

Not all diamonds are good are they? The title of this post makes me think of the dvd Blood Diamond. I loved that movie... Well those and Diamondback rattle snakes are a couple kinds of diamonds I can definitely live without.

Do you have snakes in your hood? If so I would love to hear any tips you can share with me?

(Pictures taken by monkey

Linking up with Madge today over at 
Rurality Blog Hop #56

12 comments:

  1. glad you were able to dispatch it! yup, i try to encourage snakes to move along, but if they're up close to the house or in the barn where myself or dogs and horses can get bit, they have to go. thankfully, no rattlers in this part of texas, but we have copperheads and water moccasins.

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  2. I can live without those kind of diamonds also. None of those in my neighborhood thank goodness. Otherwise I'd have the 45 out all the time. :)

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  3. Wow nothing like that around here he would probably not like the foot of snow on the ground :). B

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  4. I don't like them at all. We have cottonmouths and rattlers- and lots of others that I can't tell if good or bad. To me, all snakes are awful.

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  5. Amazing feats ~ You are a Woman for All Seasons ~ great photos ~

    artmusedog and carol, xxx

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  6. Holy Cow! That snake looks huge to me! YOU GO GIRL!

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  7. Tales of rural living can be very interesting, Jen. I have never killed a snake, but I have watched my Mom do it. I'm sure my day is coming. Good for you.

    Sounds like you are getting lots of skirt work done. After you have a chance to rest do you wan to come clean for me?

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  8. Yowzers! What a day you've had :-( You rock, lady! (I love that movie too.) We don't have many poisonous snakes around here. I don't have a gun, but I'm pretty good at whacking all enemies with my trusty shovel.

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  9. Yikes! Talk about an adrenaline rush. You did very well! Rattlers are native to our area but we've never seen one. We do get a lot of black and rat snakes, which is usually an indication that the cats aren't keeping the rodent population under control. Good excuse to get more cats, eh?

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  10. WHewie that is a big un ~ and scary !!

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  11. When we lived in Twin Pines, CA - just south of Banning, we killed 17 in one season. They were in the driveway, under the house, by the porch steps, under the clothesline.......crazy. Whew!

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  12. no snake like this one close to us, but out in the middle of flordia he has a few cousins.

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