Rattlesnakes and the Trail

[CosMonster]

:lol: Sorry, I wasn’t really clear. I just mean that the risk of getting bitten by a rattlesnake is pretty low if you watch where you’re going, so it isn’t something I generally worry about. I have a snakebite kit in the first aid kit I always carry while hiking or riding, and you bet I’d treat it as a serious emergency if someone got bit, whether human, canine, or equine. I just think it’s pointless to worry about it if you’re exercising basic caution while outside in rattlesnake country. I was trying to point out that my horses and I exercise that caution, but my dogs aren’t always so intelligent.

I don’t like killing snakes, though. They’re a valuable part of the ecosystem and they do a lot to minimize rodents that carry plague and hantavirus, so that’s good in my book. I try not to kill anything unnecessarily, though.

Cowboymom, I’m glad your dog is okay.

[HorsingRound]

I applaud your valuing snakes as part of the ecosystem. My idiot neighbors run over non-poisonous snakes in the road often. :mad:

All other snakes are welcome to take up residence here, but rattlesnakes that venture onto my place are another matter.

[Amymcree]

There is a group in my area that teaches Rattlesnake avoidance for dogs. My friend has used it with her dogs because she lives in the foothills and encounters lots of snakes on her ranch. She has since had several run ins with Rattlesnakes and her dogs and the dogs did exactly what they were trained to do. So she was thankful for the training. I haven’t gone to the trainer with our dog. He doesn’t come out on trail with me because he isn’t reliable off leash.

Amy

[SanJacMonument]

A few of my friends’ horse’s have been bitten by copperheads and rattlesnakes so I asked my vet about it. He said there is so little venom to the bite v weight of horse, it really isn’t a concern unless it is a small/baby/pony horse, or unless the horse gets bit on face.

The vet also mentioned knowing the snake for a correct ID and just being careful because most snakes will run from a horse if given an opportunity after being surprised.

And that snakes can be more aggressive in July, which is mating season.

[lolita1]

I’m from Australia I find this amazing. If a horse is bitten here it is dead and there isn’t a shot to vaccinate it.

[Kyzteke]

@lolita1;5738532

I’m from Australia I find this amazing. If a horse is bitten here it is dead and there isn’t a shot to vaccinate it.

Probably a different species of snake?

[Kyzteke]

@Amymcree;5737824

There is a group in my area that teaches Rattlesnake avoidance for dogs.

I saw this demonstrated on an episode of “The Dog Whisperer” a number of years ago. It wasn’t Cesare Milan doing the training; it was another guy who developed the method.

As I recall, it involved a rattlesnake (in a small cage)& a shock collar (presumably for the dog, not the snake…;))…

This was in S.CA. Rattlers can be deadly to older dogs, smaller dogs and even young, large dogs if they get bitten several times on the face and/or it takes a long time before their owner can get them treatment.

If you live in an area like AZ where rattlers are plentiful, it’s conceivable your dog could get bitten in your backyard while you are at work (for example) and it could be many hours before the injury is found, so that training makes alot of sense.

Luckily, I also live in an area with no poisonous snakes…we have very few snakes of any type, for that matter. After decades of living in places like AZ, CO and the southern states, which are crawling (so to speak) with venomous snakes of all kinds, it is really nice to have one less thing to worry about in terms of dangerous critters.

[cowboymom]

I just do not worry about snakes for the dogs and horses. Working in vet clinics and ranches around here and having had my own animals, in my experience a snake bite is a treatable incident that has a marginal risk of being fatal. Kinda like most things that can happen to the dogs and horses on any given day.

The only dog I have that might need to be snake trained is the GP but if he regards snakes the way he regards the electric fence I don’t think he’s going to mess with them any time soon. He’s a young big dog and he was bitten twice in the face-infection was the biggest risk. Not a big deal!

[HorsingRound]

Just today I came across a rattlesnake kickin’ back across the trail. I got off my horse about 10 feet away and started chucking rocks at the snake. The first one hit him and he scooted away all p.o.'ed and then slithered off to the downside of the ledgy trail and rattled his tail off. I kept throwing rocks into the brush even though I couldn’t see him, but he wasn’t moving any farther no matter how many rocks I lobbed at him, so my friends and I just trotted past quickly without incident.

[Beverley]

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve ridden with friends and watched their horses step over/around rattlers on the trail. I tell them when we are oh, 50 yards or more past so as not to alarm the poor snake with the screaming.

I do avoid certain trails where there are lots of them, apt to be in the rocks about elbow high. But I really don’t worry about it. If one is rattling, then it is conveying intent to strike, but more often they just want to be left alone. Heck, we had to relocate one a couple of years ago that had taken up residence in our shady outhouse on a camping/ training trip- and that one rattled while trying to get away from us (but we really didn’t want it heading for a shady tent). We managed to get it into a duffel bag and take it well up the road to release, without it ever striking. We were more concerned about heat stressing the little fella.

The automobile traffic to and from the trails is far more hazardous. So, for that matter, is lightning.

[Painted_Horse]

I have to agree Beverley. Many folks never see the snakes. I had to laugh on one trail ride. The horses were moving fast down a section of the trail with great footing. Snake was stretched across the trail. As the horses came by, It moved quickly to coil or just get out of the way, One of the horse’s front legs caught the snake in the middle and with the forward motion of the leg, Flipped it about 15 feet forward. That was one pissed off snake when he landed. But for the most part we had passed before it collected itself.

Sitting up higher on the horses back, I think I see more snakes than the hikers along the trail see. I frequently warn hikers of snakes, but they seem to notice them laying just off the edge of the trail in grass or brush.