Copperheads

[OSU Bowhunter]

I figured this topic would do better in the hunting and fishing than in the general discussions forum. I moved out on some land earlier this year and have had a few run ins with copperheads. Normally it doesn't bother me but I found one in the garage tonight. I've got two kids under 3 and I don't want them to move a toy in the garage and end up finding a copperhead. I know my they would grab for it out of curiosity. Does anyone know of a good way to keep them away? The one tonight had a fatal encounter with a shovel, but I'd prefer to keep them out of the garage in the first place.

 

[dennishoddy]

We have copperheads at our place. Killed 8 or nine over the years, and had two dogs bit. First thing is to keep the grass cut low, and keep all fallen leaves and thick brush/bushes/plants away from the house. They are coming to the house/yard because they are looking for food. They camo perfectly with fallen leaves, which is why they like being around them. Put in the rodent traps that look like a black box with a couple of holes in each side, and the block poison inside. The lid secures with a screw so the kids and dogs can't get in.
If you have lots of grasshoppers in the yard, get them sprayed. If you have brush piles around, clean them out, get rid of any place they can stay. Do you live in a rocky area? If so they may have a den in the area. That's our issue.

 

[J.T.]

Clean up, cut the grass low and put some of this anywhere you suspect they are coming from or to.

http://www.amazon.com/Easy-Gardener-602-BirdBlock-Protective/dp/B00004RA0O

Works awesome, they (and any other snake unfortunately) can get into the small squares but can't get out and suffocate. I've killed piles of Copperheads and Timber Rattlers in our yard and tried a lot of fixes, the netting is almost to efficient.

 

[DEER 24/7]

Like they said above keep it clean and use to away from the house take a sheet of plywood sitting on top of bricks, would lift once a week and check sometimes there was one under and he would meet his maker. You can also spotlight them at night and take them out right at the moment copperheads are really on the move

 

[BuckFuller]

What ever you do, be careful to not get bitten. The antivenom is VERY expensive and is not covered by most health insurance.

 

[OSU Bowhunter]

Thanks for the feedback.

Dennis, I think that's my problem. We finished building in April and I didn't get everything graded as well as it should be with all the rain so I haven't been able to mow outside the yard. We have about an acre cleared but the grass is tall outside of that and along our drive. I've also got a few burn piles i need to take care of.

JT I'm going to order some of that netting and set it up in a couple spots to see what I can get. I'm assuming if one liked a certain spot the others probably will as well.

Deer24/7 I'm going to try the spotlight trick. We've had an owl on our roof lately and I'm wondering if it is hunting snakes. I never thought about the plywood idea. Makes me cringe thinking about all the time I reached into the scrap lumber pile in the yard when we were building.

BuckFuller I have heard the antivenom is very expensive but I was not aware most insurances don't cover it. It is unfortunate they don't cover antivenom, I could understand if it was an elective procedure but that could be a life saving procedure.

 

[dennishoddy]

Deer24/7 I'm going to try the spotlight trick. We've had an owl on our roof lately and I'm wondering if it is hunting snakes. I never thought about the plywood idea. Makes me cringe thinking about all the time I reached into the scrap lumber pile in the yard when we were building.

My son and I were building a deck behind the house when we first moved here. We were using a 16' flatbed trailer as a work bench all day. Used all the wood we had and went to town for more. I let him drive to get experience pulling a trailer, and he stopped just about the time we got on the highway, and told me the tire was coming apart. We got out and looked. A copperhead had been curled around the axle/hub on the inside of the rim, and got caught up in the wheel when we drove off. He saw the snake flopping around the rim and thought it was the tire coming apart. One more bit the dust!

 

[DEER 24/7]

If you live around copperheads and don't watch where you put your hands sooner or later you are going to be bitten. My mom has flowers all around the house and is always pulling weeds from them. Dad told her for 20 years if she didn't stop she was going to get bit. Well as most times dad was right. One day she came in the house she said a copperhead bit me. Took here to hospital when they gave her antivenom she had a allergic reaction to it and almost died she was in the hospital for 5 days. You would thank that would of stopped her from pulling weeds from flower bed. Nope she still does and that was 20 years ago and dads been saying she is about due for another one.

 

[DEER 24/7]

Dennis what you said about a den when I was a kid some friends folks built a new home and didn't know there was a copperhead den close the kids are grown now but through the years three of them have been bitten one of them two times. One of the boys live there now. Here is a story to funny not to share he had a big dog named moose. Moose hated copperheads as he had been bitten several times if he would find one he would bay until you would go to him then he would kill it. The front yard is bare dirt one night my friend heard moose barking so he grab a flashlight and when outside when he got to the dog he had a big copperhead bayed. moose grabs and shakes snake and throws in into the air and about that time my friends light goes out. I would of crapped my pants

 

[makeithappen]

Ha ha ha yeah. 40 yard dash back where you came from and hope like hell.