Wild snake at home

“My name is Shadow, and me and my mother were working outside today, and we came across a snake hissing at us i told her to back off fast and we started looking atthe snake closer well im really set on the fact that i sware its a baby rattlersnake but she wont admit im right...so i did wht any dumb 19 year old boy would do....i caught it :) now we got it in a bucket and i got a few pics of it...so can anyone back me up and confirm that this is a baby rattler or not...cause if it is i will take it in and get it devenomized for me to keep....so anyone??
last edited: 9/04/08 11:27:17 AM”

“Timber rattler?”

“Where exactly are you in California?

I can't see the head real well but my fist guess would be western rattlesnake.
last edited: 9/04/08 12:25:58 PM”

“i live in sacramento Califorina on a 25 arce ranch...and the ppl who live next to me have been getting dump trucks of dirt from i dont kno where...so im thinking he might have come on/in one of the trucks...but as i said im not so sure, and i got a better pic of his head for u... if u need a different one just ask...and a dif pic not as zoomed in http://s162.photobucket.com/albums/t278/shadow_knight6662000/?action=view¤t=snakes005.jpg
last edited: 9/04/08 2:01:10 PM”

“It's a rattlesnake.
I'm not sure exactly what type

Check these out:
http://www.californiaherps.com/identification/snakesid/crotalusviridis.id.html
last edited: 9/04/08 2:20:34 PM”

“I'd have to see the eyes to be sure. Look for the pit's on the side of it's head....rattlers have pits and non-perfectly-round eyes..”

“set the thing free and quit fcking with nature. it's not there for your amusement”

“If the nose is turned up and the eyes are round, not slanted like a cat's, it is a hognose. I have caught a few of them in my life. They will hiss, strike, spit, vomit and some will even play dead. There are a few varieties of this snake. They are a member of the puff-adder family, even though they are harmless, which is why they puff up and can make their head flatten out to look like a poisonous snake. Their main diet is toads. They can actually make good pets.”

“Looks like a baby rattler to me.

I`d kill it, but that`s just me,... but the next best suggestion you got was to get rid of it and you should, no one should keep a deadly snake, it`s not (if it`ll get away) it will get out at some time while you have it and then you have a real problem.

If you`re that bored, tell your mother to have another kid so you can feed and torment it!LOL”

“That is a hognose snake.”

“The triangular head leads me to believe it is venomous.”

“That is NOT a venemous snake of any kind!!! It dont have a rattle on its tail ,it aint a rattler!! It looks like a hognose to me. Hognose snakes are famous for their hissing,hence the nickname Puff adder.They also flatten their heads as another form of defense which is why the snake in the photo seems to have a tringular head,but it doesnt really.”

“http://search.live.com/images/results.aspx?q=hognose+snake&mkt=en-us&adlt=strict

check out this link.”

“some snakes referred to as hognose are poisonous, and some are not
last edited: 9/05/08 8:42:19 AM”

“Hognose snakes (Heterodon) are rear-fanged and technically venomous, but the venom they excrete is not considered to be dangerous to humans and they will never bite in defense (as the only way to get bitten by a hognose snake is to smell like their prey). There has been some debate whether or not hognose are venomous, but there is evidence that their saliva has some toxicity to smaller prey items, such as toads and frogs. The fangs have been referred to as just "enlarged teeth", but they are genuine fangs that are used for venom delivery and also prey restraint. Despite the common belief, there is no evidence to support the fangs being used for "toad popping". Under this belief, the toads inflate their lungs to make swallowing difficult, but the fangs would penetrate the lungs and deflate them. However, whole toads with intact lungs are commonly regurgitated by recently captured hognoses.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hognose”

“hognose snakes are poisonous”

PHLLLT!! No they are NOT! YES they have potent saliva that helps subdue their prey(mostly toads)and slightly enlarged rear teeth (not fangs)but it is not venom and not harmfull to humans.”

“well the one absolute way to check is to catch the snake behind the head and expose its mouth. use a knife or something to scrape at the upper jaw and if fangs hinge down you have a dangerous snake. i once did this with a copperhead i had killed that someone swore was something else. (copperheads sometimes have a very dark phase down around here.) anyway as for keeping it...dude its a wild animal. take it outside deep in the woods and let it go....if nothing it will help keep the vermin down. ive been bitten before and its not any fun whatsoever.
last edited: 9/05/08 8:50:01 AM”

“or, be a reckless moron, keep it, and take a chance of you or someone else getting bitten by a poisonous snake and risking anaphylactic shock if theyre allergic”

“Wow.

Snake Fuego.”

“What can we say...it's a slow day.”

“I'm not a herpatologist but I play one on TT.”

“I stand by my original post. It is a Hognose.”

“If it is a rattle snake you're playng with fire. Do yourself and your mom's insurance company a favor and set it free.”

“I thought CA had very strict laws concerning the retaining of wild animals as pets. I was under the impression this case would be covered by those statutes. But I don't live in CA so what do I know.”

“Rev, its TT - what you may know or not know is irrelevent!”

“Is there a film crew "just hanging around" at your house?

http://www.tv.com/venom-er/show/26162/episode.html?om_act=convert&om_clk=tabssh&tag=tabs;episodes


The thread title reminds me of the Troggs, LOL....   I think I'll go get another beer -----”