help with cottonmouths

[sassyblue]

I live in northeast texas and in the last two weeks I have racked up over $700.00 in vetrinarian bills. Two dogs had to be treated for snakebite and one dog died. A total of three of my french bullhauhaus have been bitten by cottonmouths. The one who died did not exhibit any swelling that I could see but died in the space of less than 24 hrs. Most of my dogs weigh less than 15 lbs. I killed a 4 ft. cottonmouth and a 2.5 ft. cottonmouth and a baby cottonmouth about 13" long last week within a couple of days of each other. I heard the story about how there are an abundance of copperheads in texas now because of the cicada hatchings but i wonder how accurate this can be because snakes like meat! So my questions are: why would I find two adult cottonmouths virtually 10 ft. from my house near the base of crepe myrtle trees and no where near water? (unless you count an above ground swimming pool with a ladder) and yes they WERE cottonmouths. Would a cottonmouth of these sizes try to eat a small dog? At first I thought the baby I killed was a copperhead but after researching cottonmouths I discovered it was a brightly colored baby cottonmouth, so my next question is: Is it likely there are more babies out there (this one was 3 ft. from my front door and of course all my doofus little dogs were lined up around it barking like crazy and it was coiled up with its little mouth wide open. Do snakes travel in pairs? I love non poisoinous snakes and wish I had a pair of kingsnakes. For some reason my little dogs are seeming to make it their mission to hunt inside my 2 acre chainlink fenced area for something(more snakes?). After dark they are constantly barking and raising cain to go out but I do not let them go out alone at night anymore. Do I need to fear that they may encounter more cottonmouths. P.S. as an answer to the guy who wanted to introduce his dog to to his snake my recommendation would be a Big Fat $$$NO unless the snake will not bite or squeeze. Any answers or recommendations on how to drive snakes away besides sulphur or cats or snake repellant would be greatly appreciated. Any info on why I would find 3 cottonmouths of this description w/i 2 wks of each other in the same area?

[macandchz]

you must live in a very isolated area to have all that snake trouble. i don't know anything about cottonmouths but i sure would stop putting my dogs outside by themselves at any time of the day as long as the threat is around.

[MDT]

SB,
sorry about your dogs. def not good. a few things about snakes..pertains to all, not just venomous. they are in "abundance" for simple reasons. habitat and food. sometimes the two intermingle (great habitat for food = great place for predators to hang out). Btw,..cicadas ARE meat (they are animals), just not in the filet mignon version you are thinking of. copperheads/cottonmouths are in the same genus, so there will be some similarities in behavior, habitat, etc. the juvenile cottonmouths are very similarly patterned like copperheads as well (like you noticed).

you need to look around your property and determine if you have habitat favorable to either the snake (cool areas to hide, nesting areas, water source, etc), or do you have a great place for food to hang out (old debris around a barn, old tires, brick/brush piles, open food sources like bags of feed or grain). if the answer is "yes" or "i dunno, maybe", then you should think about making some changes. remove the favorable habitat, and the snakes move on (usually, unless your house was built over a hibernaculum or something).
Btw, they are not gonna eat your dogs. But they do pose a risk to your dogs, you and your family. Be careful, think about how you go outside (flip-flops, barefoot).

oh yeah, no such thing as snake repellant...it doesn't work. a cat will get bit too. your idea of kingsnakes is actually pretty good.

[Minkness]

Perhaps not snake repellent, but I have heard that certain moth balls help keep things like rodents and bugs away which will then help keep snakes away. But it's only a certain kind and I can't remember which ones =/

[sattva]

You might try glue traps... It may take a while to get them all in your vicinity, but short of moving I don't see where you have a whole lot of choices... For gods sake be careful! The trap does not kill the snake... Keep us posted!

[MDT]

even naphtha impregnated mothballs will not deter snakes. and glue traps, no matter how much you dislike venomous snakes, are not discriminating. they will catch everything. very cruel and inhumane way to catch something.

btw...
Man 1: have you ever smelled mothballs?
Man 2: of course I have, they smell terrible!
Man 1: oh wow..how'd you get their little legs apart far enough to smell them?!?!?

you're welcome :D

[FWK]

I heard the story about how there are an abundance of copperheads in texas now because of the cicada hatchings but i wonder how accurate this can be because snakes like meat!

Copperheads are fond of eating Cicadas, but the number of Copperheads have not changed. Only more have been seen this year because they've been drawn to areas Cicadas are emerging. Cicadas have had a bumper crop this year due to all the rain last year. If this continues Copperhead populations will slowly rise to meet the available food supply, but the number of adult Copperheads cannot suddenly explode simply because there are more Cicadas this year. This is standard media hype, spreading misinformation to make a dollar.

So my questions are: why would I find two adult cottonmouths virtually 10 ft. from my house near the base of crepe myrtle trees and no where near water?

Because there is food of some kind drawing them to your property. Cottonmouths are primarily terrestrial animals that have adapted to hunting in an aquatic environment. They do not live in water, only typically near water. They can often be found far from permanent bodies of water. Cottonmouths are veritable garbage disposals, they will eat almost anything. Rodents, fish, inverts, amphibians, birds, reptiles, they've even been documented eating carrion. You most likely have a healthy population of rodents drawing them to your area.

and yes they WERE cottonmouths.

Do you have pictures? I'd like to see the animals you're dealing with, I like to see snakes from many different locals. Gives one a feel for how the color/pattern changes across their range.

Would a cottonmouth of these sizes try to eat a small dog?

No, even a record sized Cottonmouth could not eat your dogs.

At first I thought the baby I killed was a copperhead but after researching cottonmouths I discovered it was a brightly colored baby cottonmouth, so my next question is: Is it likely there are more babies out there

It is certainly possible, but neonate Cottonmouths tend to spread quickly so they don't end up competing for food, or even eating each other. Cottonmouths are cannibalistic.

Do snakes travel in pairs?

No, this is a myth. Cottonmouths in particular tend to be solitary, as I already mentioned they are cannibalistic. Some species of Rattlesnake exhibit interesting and poorly understood social behaviors, but even they do not travel together.

For some reason my little dogs are seeming to make it their mission to hunt inside my 2 acre chainlink fenced area for something(more snakes?).

Dogs are predators, it is in their nature to hunt.

Any answers or recommendations on how to drive snakes away besides sulphur or cats or snake repellant would be greatly appreciated.

These methods do not work anyway.

Any info on why I would find 3 cottonmouths of this description w/i 2 wks of each other in the same area?

Food. There is something these snakes like to eat drawing them to your property, most likely rodents. The only way to encourage them to find new hunting grounds is to eliminate the food supply. Keep the grass cut low, trim bushes at least a few inches off the ground, eliminate any water sources, clean up piles of debris, etc. Once the food is gone they will leave as well, though you still may see them passing through on occasion. You may want to consider snake avoidance training for your dogs. It is worth noting that the majority of venomous snake bites reported in the US every year occur when someone approaches a snake to kill or otherwise harass it, you are greatly increasing your risk of a bite by harassing these animals. Discouraging them from hanging out by cleaning up will not only protect your dogs, but you as well. If a snake is seen the best course of action is to contain the dogs until the snake moves on. You could try joining the Facebook group What kind of snake is this: North Texas (https://www.facebook.com/groups/whatsnakeisthis/), we can provide quick, accurate IDs for any snake you find, offer advice on how to get along with your local wildlife, and someone in the area may even be willing to come out and help you with problem animals.

[Minkness]

Haha! Thank you MDT! XD

[Sublimeballs]

Unfortunately with it being cotton mouths is they eat anything.... road kill, other snakes, turtles, frogs.... they don't care. So no matter what you have a food source available

[sattva]

even naphtha impregnated mothballs will not deter snakes. and glue traps, no matter how much you dislike venomous snakes, are not discriminating. they will catch everything. very cruel and inhumane way to catch something.

btw...
Man 1: have you ever smelled mothballs?
Man 2: of course I have, they smell terrible!
Man 1: oh wow..how'd you get their little legs apart far enough to smell them?!?!?

you're welcome :D
Will have to agree to disagree here... This guy has cottonmouths killing his dogs! How far must it go before before he kills them? Wait until a human gets bit? Besides all you have to do is poor a little oil on them and they are free.. I don't know how to be more humane then that...
Hell if it were me, I be waterboarding one of them trying to find out were his friends are. HaHa :yes:

[MDT]

Will have to agree to disagree here... This guy has cottonmouths killing his dogs! How far must it go before before he kills them? Wait until a human gets bit? Besides all you have to do is poor a little oil on them and they are free.. I don't know how to be more humane then that...
Hell if it were me, I be waterboarding one of them trying to find out were his friends are. HaHa :yes:

Like I said in the post, if he uses the sticky traps, you catch everything. Mice, lizards, kingsnakes, gartersnakes, moles, etc...I have an idea on how to be more humane...don't use sticky traps.

And, it really doesn't matter what your pour on them, it's cruel. I'm sure all these "collateral damage animals" are cool w getting oil poured all over them. And, btw, I'm not a tree hugger-PETA plant. There is no reason to go out of your way to kill venomous snakes, it was already stated by me and FWK on how to reduce their numbers (you'll never get rid of them entirely).

[pet_snake_78]

You'll probably end up getting bitten screwing around with the snake on a glue trap. Your yard is likely a sink population for snakes from better habitat. I suspect more will continue to come no matter how many you kill, because they are coming in from habitat that is at carrying capacity so the excess snakes seek out resources in new areas. If you're really paranoid, you could build a drift fence around your yard, but that's going to look really funny lol

[be4rdeddr4gon]

What kind of problems do you have