petsareus's Blog

Many snakes look the same a prime example of this is the water moccasin and the water snakes. They both have what many call a triangular head. The shape of the head can not be an identifying factor. As with the water moccasin and water snake both look almost identical except the water moccasin is short and fat where the water snake is longer and thinner. It can be very hard to identify any snake unless you can see the whole body. It is best to just walk away and the snake will disappear and go on hunting. Many people will ask you the shape of the head but this can not truly identify the snake try and see from a distance if there is a pattern and how long it is. Most water snakes and water moccasins’ look very dark and have very little patterns when they are dry. In the spring when mating season is in full swing you may see more snakes than usual, they are trying to find mates and can be more aggressive than usual. After hibernation and mating they are very hungry and are now in search of food. It is best to leave to go on their way. There is an example of this in our photo album of the rat snake. Another snake that seems to be confusing are the hognose snakes. They will hood up like a king cobra but this is to bigger to their opponents. A king cobra can grow 8 feet or more where the hognose is a very small snake between 2 and 3 feet. As with all animals they must try and have a defense mechanism against their enemies’.

Snakes shed their skin in order to grow and this is done several times a year in adults and more often in younger snakes. During the preshed the snake may be more aggressive than usual since the eye caps make it hard to see and they may strike out to protect them selves

This is called the blue stage when the skin actually looks a very pale blue covering the snake. Once this stage has past the skin becomes clear and snake is now ready to shed the old skin that is very tight. The skin will be shed head first and usually in one piece you will see all the scales and the eye caps to the tip of the tail. The skin will also hold the pattern of the snake and will make identification of snakes around your home much easier. Due to the stretching of the skin during shedding it will be a bit longer than the snake really is.

Concerning the shedding that was found outside your home with a grayish ting and about 3 feet long could be several different snake a young rat snake, hognose, or several other non venomous snakes. Can you identify a pattern in the snake skin? Could you possibly send us a picture?

A shedding from a snake can tell us a lot, we keep the 10 plus foot sheddings for educational purposes. We dry the skins which makes them very vulnerable to cracking and possible falling apart. These skins have the snakes pattern etc. If the skin is kept in a bag or area where it can not dry out it will smell terrible. When the snakes are ready to shed they give off an odor.

Another important fact is that of a beheaded snake. We recommend you never do this 1 you kill an animals, 2 the snakes head has involuntary muscles and can possible bite for up to an hour after.

Learning to properly handle snakes takes many years, several of the programs out there show professional handlers picking up snakes and handling them. Please do not do this-- these are professionals and know how certain snakes will react to their handling. We have been removing and handling these animals for many years and we still use extreme caution especially with the wild unpredictable snakes. We are glad you are watching these programs and learning about these beautiful animals, we need them to prevent over population of rodents, etc.