Did i do the right thing?

silvsupratt · 01-20-11, 08:40 PM

This happened in august, but its been bothering me ever since (before i go on, i was working on a road crew hours away from home and any kind of rescue or rehabilitation at the time was out of the question unfortunately) but as i was moving equipment i noticed a garter had been hit by a car and was laying flat on the road.. Sad? yes. However, the snake was pregnant and by some lucky chance 2 babies were alive and struggling to get out of its stomach. i helped them out and moved them off the highway to a grassy puddle a couple feet away.. Miraculous they survived, i wanted to give them the best chance they could at surviving. But there was 12 hours left in the day still, far from my hotel, and absollutely nothing else i could do.. But was this right? im thinking i should have euthanized them quick and painlessly cause now my concsious is telling me that they more than likely suffered and died in the wild.. Judging by what i just saw, killing them was not even a thought. I love snakes and had the best intentions, but wouldnt mind a little input from the pros

infernalis · 01-20-11, 09:19 PM

I breed Thamnophis (Garters) and I can honestly and from the heart tell you that if those babies had mobility, then they were ready for a shot at the world.

You did a very good thing, Most folks would have done nothing to help them at all.

They stand (or stood) the same exact odds of survival had mom birthed them. If they crawled and the tongues were flicking, they were ready.

**Aaron_S** · 01-20-11, 09:20 PM

I don't see how this is a bad thing or a 'wrong' thing. They are wild snakes and you gave them a chance by moving them away from the road. They can handle being on their own if you're worried you should have kept them.

NennaMeerkat · 01-20-11, 09:21 PM

Best just let nature take its course. Since a human killed the mom a human can help as much as possible. If the babies die later then so be it, but I think you did a good thing. I don't think even I could kill them.

infernalis · 01-20-11, 09:25 PM

When the mothers give birth, the babies immediately crawl away and begin life. So like I said, they had much better odds off the road than in it.

And on the subject, I always stop and finish off dying snakes that have been run over, They can live for hours like that, it has to be excruciating, so the right thing to do then is a swift stomp on the head. If you cannot do that, then use the vehicle to finish it.

**Aaron_S** · 01-20-11, 09:27 PM

I agree with Wayne. When an animal is beyond help it's best to just let it go.

Damion930 · 01-20-11, 09:35 PM

Just the thought of trying to helpis good in my book kudos to u

silvsupratt · 01-20-11, 10:33 PM

thanks people, its such a huge weight off my shoulders seeing these support posts.. the mom and what looked to be 3 or 4 other snakes inside most certainly didnt suffer at all.. such a great thing tho, as tragic as it was to see a snake embedded in the road, seeing her alert and active babies was absolutely amazing, and quite touching too.. i remember hiding a garter i caught (ricky) when i was about 6, and did i ever get it from my parents when they found a snake living in our old pirahna tank a few weeks later.. Get this, my folks took me to arachnohobia in theatres around the same time ( i have a crippling fear and hatred of spiders to this day which i attribute to that movie somewhat), but insisted on following me back to where i caught him, to make sure i released him and didnt sneak him back home... silly folks. Kept me fascinated and loving snakes my whole life tho

Reptile_Reptile · 01-21-11, 12:20 AM

yes you did the right thing. i came across a yellow striped garter snake (dont know its exact name we call them yellow racers here) that had been run over by a bike mid mass so i did the only thing i could think of i stomped it and buried it in the field that was to the right of the sidewalk using my pocket knife as a shovel. but i was really bent up over what i had to do. but i just had to remember that i saved it hours of struggling and suffering and it made me feel better. (pretty much what Wayne said)

silvsupratt · 01-21-11, 01:50 AM

thats exactly how i thought.. snake road kill is fairly rare where i am from, so providing it a necessary burial was ( to me anyway) absolutely necessary, especially since it was still in the tire path.. dead or not there was no way i was going to let her be mutilated by more traffic.. such an amazing experience, but not being able to take the survivors still haunts me