SageHill Ranch Journal

[SageHill]

It's Tuesday sit with Kit day. The lil' guy is turning into a squirmy guy when it's time to change his diaper - so DDIL and I are double teaming him to change his diaper anddddd my phone rings.
It's DH -- After my "Hello" I hear "Everyone is ok ........" --OK I like that but the mind goes to something went horrible wrong but all is fine.
DH was out walking dogs and there was a rattlesnake next to the chicken coop, He got the dogs back in the house and called.

Annnnnd it's #rattlesnake2026 second one of the year. Almost a month to the day from the first one.

He safely managed a permanent relocation without me.
Yeah I see that it had partaken of it's last meal, I still don't want any rattlers anywhere near us. Wondering it they are longer when they have empty stomachs???

 

[Mini Horses]

Wow....huge one. Sure it was full of food? Not babies? Geesh -- see why I couldn't live there? Not with those around! That's scary. Did he shoot it?

 

[farmerjan]

Not to be scary, but don't rattlesnakes give birth to live young??? Possible pregnant ???? Did you lose any chickens or eggs???

 

[RR Homestead]

It's Tuesday sit with Kit day. The lil' guy is turning into a squirmy guy when it's time to change his diaper - so DDIL and I are double teaming him to change his diaper anddddd my phone rings.
It's DH -- After my "Hello" I hear "Everyone is ok ........" --OK I like that but the mind goes to something went horrible wrong but all is fine.
DH was out walking dogs and there was a rattlesnake next to the chicken coop, He got the dogs back in the house and called.

Annnnnd it's #rattlesnake2026 second one of the year. Almost a month to the day from the first one.

View attachment 127311

He safely managed a permanent relocation without me.
Yeah I see that it had partaken of it's last meal, I still don't want any rattlers anywhere near us. Wondering it they are longer when they have empty stomachs???

I hope I'm reading that correctly and he PERMANENTLY relocated it. That's a healthy one. Can't see how many buttons it has but looks like a good aged one.
Don't ya love hearing "Everyone is ok" or "I'm ok" right before something awful? As soon as I hear those words I cringe.

 

[SageHill]

OK - I'm upping the count #rattlesnake2026 and #rattlesnake2026 as our occasional ranch helper found two, but thankfully those two were not close to the house.
Nope no baby chicks to lose, all four chickens are happily scratching away.
Someone told me they are live birth - but I'll definitely have to check on that later today. Freaking scary stuff.

 

[murphysranch]

I

 

[murphysranch]

I found this one yesterday. That's a dog ball. I picked him up and relocated him down to the fenced in garden. The cats won't bother it now.

 

[farmerjan]

Never heard of a dog ball... here it looks like maybe a sub species of the eastern Garter snake... I used to catch and raise them as a kid... my mom was very tolerant... and they eat lots of flies and bugs although they are more carniverous I think... frogs, toads, small stuff like salamanders, SLUGS.... we had few slugs when we had a bunch of garter snakes... They will strike but are not poisonous... They also have live young...

 

[murphysranch]

My mistake FJ. I was frustrated in trying to put text into the same post. I meant to say Thats a dog ball for size reference. This snake was about 18" long. Very docile.

Common Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis):

The common garter snake is the most variable of the Thamnophis species in western WA. Three different sub-species of common garter snake have contiguous ranges in the area - T. s conncinus (SW WA. and outer coast of the Olympic Peninsula), T. s pickeringii (Puget Sound lowlands) and T. s fitchi (east of the Cascade crest). All common garter snake subspecies have seven upper labial scales.

T.s conncinus (red-spotted garter snake) has a solid-colored red or orange head with a wide yellow or green dorsal stripe and no lateral stripes. The sides of the body are black with conspicuous red spots.

 

[HomeOnTheRange]

(DuckDuckGo Search)

Rattlesnakes give birth to live young rather than laying eggs. This unique reproductive strategy is known as ovoviviparity.

What is Ovoviviparity?​

• Definition: In ovoviviparous species, the female retains the eggs inside her body, where they develop and hatch internally.
• Nourishment: The embryos are nourished by a yolk sac, and there is no direct placental connection to the mother.
• Birth Process: When the young are ready to be born, they emerge fully formed, often encased in a thin membrane that they quickly break free from.