On Thursday, June 11, 2020, I had let a few of my cats outside and I was trying to keep an eye on all of them.  The favorite occupation is to try to catch a lizard to torture to death.  They don’t mean to.  They are just trying to have a little fun.  They carefully carry the lizard in their mouths and then release it and see if it will move.  if it does, then it is pounced on and caught again.  Well, this day, Trigger showed an interest in something in the bushes.  He is lightning fast and if it was a lizard or bird, he would not hesitate.  I figured that there might be a snake and it could be a rattlesnake, so I grabbed a rake and began to cautiously look in the bushes.  I would have felt better if I had on my rubber boots, but I just happened to have on flip flops.  

I was right!  It was a snake!  To my great relief, it was only a kingsnake.  I love kingsnakes!  They are very gentle and rarely bite.  Once, while living in Fallbrook, I caught two of them in one day.  It was my daughter’s birthday and a few friends had come over.  My daughter was holding one of the snakes and her friend was holding the other one.  A family member called to sing Happy Birthday over the phone on the speaker.  This was the last straw of scary noise for the snake that my daughter was holding and it bit her.  Not only did it bite her, but it wasn’t letting go.  They have lots of needle-sharp teeth that can cause a little pain, but not too much damage.  I jumped into rescue mode and told her to put the snake on the floor.  Once on the floor, the snake let go so it could make its escape, but of course, I picked it up so it couldn’t escape into my house.  This trick works for lizards that latch on too.  Knowing animal behavior prevents fear and panic.  

When I saw this kingsnake, its head was away from me and it didn’t see me.  I crept up behind it and figured I could catch it if I grabbed it by the tail.  I have never known a kingsnake to bite when being caught.  So, I took the risk and grabbed it by the tail.  I was aware of their main defense mechanism and so I wasn’t surprised when it defecated on my hand.  It has a smell like musk from a skunk or ferret.  Most unsuspecting humans would be grossed out and immediately drop the snake, but not me.  I have a lot of experience with snakes and as you will see in the video, I am not afraid to hold them.    I hope you will learn to appreciate snakes.  The more you get to know them, the less you will fear them.  Fear of snakes is a learned behavior.  God has made them quite beautiful.  Even this dark brown and white ringed snake had beauty in its simplicity.  I hope you will enjoy the video.