Very fortunate!

[Bilbo Baggins]

The farmer where I hunt the most in Kansas told me they killed 28 copperheads just last year. He said he would NEVER venture out on his property like I do when I am out pheasant hunting. He thinks I am crazy for two reasons: A. There are lots of copperheads in the area B. That I would walk miles to see a rooster pheasant and drive hundreds of miles just to get to his fields in the first place

I guess I would have to agree with my friend on both accounts.

[M. R. Byrd]

Glad all is well, that is except for the copperheads.

[Bilbo Baggins]

Hope we get some moisture headed toward Kansas pretty soon. Hang in there, things are bound to get better!

[cheesy]

Here's the pic of my brother in laws shorthair after taking on a rattler.



Here he is a few months later out west, no worse for the wear-

[Toad]

Thanks for the replies and well wishes, guys. Yes, a swelled up, sick dog, family member, or ME is what I sure hope to avoid. It's beautiful, rugged country here in the flinthills, but one must be careful...

Wow, Cheesy, I hope the thumb heals okay.

@ O&N,

I think you are spot-on. Now that I think about it, it seems like we see a lot more of them during dry spells. I would guess the den must be somewhere close to my neighbor's place. Or it could be that he has a very small spring on his land, and that's the closest permanent water I am aware of. Except for the dogs' water in the backyard.

FWIW, I don't take any joy from killing copperheads. I wish they didn't have venom and then I would enjoy seeing them and appreciate the benefits of a reduced rodent population. Out away from my home I am live-and-let-live to anything I don't intend to eat. But part of my job is to protect the family and the animals in our care when I'm at home, which sometimes ends up being a bad deal for poisonous snakes, brown recluse spiders, and chicken-eating varmints.

[Labman500]

Glad you, your family and dogs are OK. Just when do those snakes, spiders and scorpions hibernate for the winter, because that will be the time of year that I come out to go pheasant hunting. I hate those critters.

[Toad]

Originally Posted by Labman500

Glad you, your family and dogs are OK. Just when do those snakes, spiders and scorpions hibernate for the winter, because that will be the time of year that I come out to go pheasant hunting. I hate those critters.

Yet another reason to love hunting in the snow.

I've heard the scorpions are no worse than a bee sting so I don't worry too much about them. Their population must be kind of cyclical because some years we never have any and other years they seem to be everywhere. Also, i could be wrong, but it also seems like we see a lot less since we got the chickens a few years ago. They may be in the birds' menu.

[Toad]

Well, our luck is still holding out!

We were in the living room shortly after putting the kids to bed, and my wife suddenly blurts out, "SNAKE BARK"! Sure enough, I listened and Junie was out there barking all by herself with the occasional excited yowl. I went out with the flashlight (in flip-flops and shorts) and there it was, in the lilac bushes right in the middle of the backyard, another copperhead. I couldn't get it with the hoe due to all the branches, so I put all the dogs in the house and went for the shotgun. He was gone by the time I got back with the shotgun and headlamp. Hopefully he will move on and we won't see him again...

All dogs were fine, thankfully. My neighbors to the North's dog got bitten in the face last week.

It is truly strange the way our dogs react to them. Daisy will point a box turtle like nobody's business, but she is totally nonchalant about the copperheads. Not really interested, or afraid, just pretty much indifferent to them, walking around the yard, like "what's all the fuss about?" She won't go close to them, but you can't tell from her behavior that anything is wrong at all.

My wife's little dog barks ALL DAMN DAY long at NOTHING, but doesn't bark at the copperheads. She really avoids the area and seems very fearful, but doesn't bark at all. She just paces nervously far away from the snake or goes in the dog door and stays inside.

Then I NEVER hear a peep out of Junie all day and night, but she goes totally nuts when there is a snake in the yard. It's interesting... I bet before we got Junie we probably had copperheads in the backyard all the time, but the other dogs just avoided them and came in the house when the snakes were out.

Must be a bad year for copperheads. My neighbor to the East (with the spring) killed two more last week that his dogs had cornered.

[Toad]

I'm kind of glad the snake left on its own tonight, but I am a little nervous that it will keep coming back like the last one did.

Also I'm glad that Junie is barking to let us know there is a snake in the yard, but I hope she continues to keep a safe distance from it and doesn't decide to tangle with it. I hope she doesn't become more confident over time and decide to take a nip at one.

[kick them up]

Toad, Glad you dodged the bullet again

If I were you I would do the following.

1) find a real estate agent
2) again go to the Casio and bet it all. With your luck you are unbeatable.
3) take the money and move to a snake free area or hire that jackass Billy the exterminator. (it would be fun to watch).

Take care and you have given me nightmares! YIKES

Kick