Dozens of Tangled Rattlesnakes Found Beneath Woman's House Floorboards
By: Robert Lea (MSN)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
A California woman's worst fears were confirmed when a reptile rescue team pulled dozens of rattlesnakes from under her home. The Sonoma County resident called full-service wildlife rescue organization Sonoma County Reptile Rescue on October 2, after she began to suspect there were snakes nesting beneath her floorboards.
© yhelfman/Getty A stock image of a northern Pacific rattlesnake. A snake rescue organization in Sonoma County recently rescued 88 snakes from beneath a woman's floorboards.
The group reported on its Facebook page that during a near four-hour rescue operation they rescued 22 adult snakes and 59 babies from the property.
And on a return visit to the home Alan Wolfe, the director of the reptile rescue team, removed a further seven snakes. That brings the total number of snakes taken from the property to 88.
Sonoma County Reptile Rescue will return to the property several times between now and October 15, to ensure no rattlesnakes have been left behind.
Wolfe added in the post: "there'll still be more there...very aware that they can come and go as they please, but I'm just giving them a new home somewhere else."
Wolfe identified the snakes as northern Pacific rattlesnakes. These reptiles, common to California, grow to about 3 feet long and are greenish-brown or greenish-grey in color. Like all rattlesnakes, they have wide, flat, heads.
The Burke Museum says the birthing season for these snakes, which live in dry areas such as rocky grasslands but avoid deserts, runs from late August to October.
Females have between 4 and 22 infants, and they will often gather together in a single den to give birth, possibly explaining why so many were found under this unnamed woman's home.
The snakes feed on small mammals and nesting birds, using venomous bites to kill their prey. This makes the northern Pacific rattlesnake, part of the viper family, highly venomous with bites that can induce intense pain, swelling, blistering, nausea, and vomiting in humans.
In extreme cases, the venom can impair blood coagulation and break down the red blood cells, leading to severe systemic symptoms like shock and organ damage. This can ultimately lead to death if untreated.
The snakes, which are generally nocturnal and one of the least aggressive rattlesnakes, will usually avoid contact with humans, but bites are not uncommon. Any bite by a northern Pacific rattlesnake should be treated as a medical emergency and in such situations the first six to eight hours are critical.
Patients with bites are treated with an anti-venom through intravenous injection, and also receive intravenous fluids to prevent them from becoming dehydrated.
The Sonoma Ecology Center says that fatalities resulting from northern Pacific rattlesnake bites are extremely rare, and most human victims are cleared to leave hospital after 24 hours.
However, this is unlikely to comfort many of the commenters on the Sonoma County Reptile Rescue post.
One wrote: "Ummmm where is this house located? Just hoping we aren't neighbors!"
Looking on the bright side, another Facebook user responded: "I bet they didn't have a rodent problem."
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She needs a mongoose, or two.
probably no rats or mice though, lol
I'd get a jack russell terrier, they like to kill snakes just as much as rats. Sure every once in a while you might find your dog dead but I'd consider it taking one for the team and just get a new dog. I don't mind snakes but I don't have venomous snakes in my area but if I did they'd be dead just like any Wasp or Yellowjacket that nests in my yard.
Not a fan of mice or rats. I live on the outskirts, and a cat sure comes in handy. Small patch of Timber Rattlers in the area, and you can find some Westerns, but the Copperhead is the most abundant around these parts. Not afraid of snakes. I used to go searching for, and catch, venomous snakes all of the time. (too many episodes of The Crocodile Hunter) I'd be pretty uncomfortable, knowing that I had the local venomous snake brothel right beneath my feet though.
You have no choice but to burn the house down.
At least smoke them out
and while they are gone seal the foundation.
like any other "nest" they get gamey smelling too.
When we lived in Marin County on base, one of our Doc's came home from golfing and was putting his gear back in the garage
when he got bit in the "thenar webspace" the webbing between the thumb and forefinger.
He lost the webbing and part of his lower thumb.
Pacific Northern rattler. No warning, it just struck.
Didn't live very long after being hit with a bucket repeatedly.
Nasty little vipers.
Many months later the surgeon returned to full duty.
I don't know if it would work, but, When I was trying to get rid of the groundhogs that were hiding under my house and eating my vegetables in my garden, I tried about everything with no good results. I called the local Fish & Game dept to see what they recommended and they told me that no animal alive can tolerate ammonia.
So I bought a bottle of ammonia and sprayed it under the house where they were hiding. I never saw them again anywhere near my yard or house. I've used ammonia on others areas where pests were taking up space where they shouldn't. Works every time, and it's a lot cheaper than hiring someone to do the job.
Works on deer and other wildlife critters as well, and does not hurt them.
So... These snakes needed to be "rescued"? Really? Leave them be.
So you'd leave 88 venomous snakes in your cellar ?
Well it's more like a " crawl space :", lol.
They're an apex predator. There must be enough rodents around for them to eat in the area and they'll disperse when they're done having babies. Then you close up the openings where they're getting in. Your fears are no reason to disrupt their lives.
Gee SG
I posted something that wasn't political and shouldn't bend any one out of shape.
Give me a break already.
Had my share of snakes lizards and caiman for pets.
They ARE cold blooded killers.
Sorry SP. I just get frustrated wildlife being destroyed because of humans' irrational fears. Sharks killed by the thousands, bears "euthanized" for just being bears, and the State of Idaho saying kill 90% of the wolves in the state. It seems that the very same people who think hundreds of thousands dead from covid is acceptable but a few dead calves from wolves is the end of the world. I didn't mean to take it out on you.
Me too. Around here we have people bitching about the overabundance of white tail deer and how they are a menace, but they don't get that we destroyed the predators, so all deer do is eat, mate and breed - then hit by cars, tangled in barbed wire & so on.
Well the snakes were captured and removed
and I think Ravens idea was terrific.
Spray enough ammonia under the house and the last few snakes will leave on their own.
No destruction, just traffic control.
Morning...nice looking snakes.. look abit like our Tigers..yep time for them to go..just a little bit to close to home...
Considering the number of venomous critters there are in your neck of the woods, I'd expect you to be pretty comfortable with a few measly rattlesnakes
“Billy, can you give us a sentence using ‘team’, ‘rescue’, and ‘reptile’?
“NFW miss Allen.”