Pet owners warning

Jerrybo66 wrote:

Y-Guy wrote:
Seeing those pics reminds me how much I HATE SNAKES. We had one of them around our camper when we stayed at Coral Pink, the Rangers came around to pick him up. I was more inclined to introduce him to my ATV tire, Ranger won.

A lot of folks have this opinion but I think it's not fair. Living and camping in the AZ desert I've encountered many snakes. Most will turn and run. We visit known snake dens yearly, have seen their mating dance and have encountered some big ones with attitudes that didn't want disturbed, growled and chased us. Yes, they can growl. When Eastern visitors come down I usually agitate the snakes so they coil, rattle, etc for pictures. At one snake den area I stood in one place and counted 16 rattle snakes around me. I showed no aggression to them and walked back to the Jeep. Snakes just want to live and do their natural thing. If one is resting in the shade of a bush and some dog lifts his leg on the bush, what would you expect the poor snake to do? I don't fear rattle snakes, they are part of the environment but have a healthy respect for them, especially the ones with an attitude. Of course our dogs aren't included in the entertainment by the snakes. I've killed one or two for a taste and tanned there hides but haven't done so for many years. Live & let live........... :)
OK, I think here's where I lose my creditability. A buddy from Fla. came for a visit and a desert camping trip. We harvested a large rattler, cleaned it, skinned it, and put it in the refrigerator for a lunch the next day. When we took it out of the refer and it started to warm, it coiled.........:?...."My thoughts"............ (I should delete this.... What the heck, see what happens...... Common sense says to delete the the comment....No one is gonna believe it, delete it... Maybe some one else had the same experience..... Fat chance, delete it... I swear I'm not trolling and this actually happened. I know the odds are the same as hitting the lottery but has any one else had this experience???? You are so brave to agree with me.. :)

Mr or Mrs Green is still alive, I would not kill it unless it was a danger to others. I dislike rattlers, but not snakes in general.
Never heard of one acting like yours did, but I know they still move and coil after you chop off their head !!