So glad that Hissy has found a good temporary home. I've always loved snakes and have had them as pets since I was a child. Later, when I was in grad school and living in an apartment just off campus, my much younger brother brought a rat snake home from scout camp. Unfortunately, my father, who was terrified of snakes, announced that either the snake went or he would go, so naturally I took him off my brother's hands and installed him in a nice herpetarium in my apartment (at which point I discovered just who my friends were and weren't!) Kaa (as I named him, from Kipling of course) stayed with me until I had to move to another location, at which point I found a new home for him.I would love to have a snake pet again, but now I'm in a New York City apartment and haven't the room it would need. I'm hoping that Hissy will find a wonderful new home. Thanks to you for being so kind in rescuing him even though you weren't familiar with snakes!

I've never seen an 8 ft coachwhip in Calif. They rarely get that long in other regions. Coachwhips change color somewhat as they mature. It sounds like you found a hatchling. They lay eggs. Some snakes bear live young, but not coachwhips. Some subspecies of coachwhips are popularly known as "red racers." At the moment I'm in AZ and away from my library to check your subspecies. They capture prey with their mouth and by hold it down with a loop of the body, but they're not constrictors. Snakes have recurved teeth to hold prey. A coachwhip is unlikely to capture and hold even the smallest dog, but the snakes can deliver a nasty bite. For you, you'd have to catch it to be bitten. I like your attitude: curious but not overreactive.

Marcia, Please help me find out what kind of snake I came across today. While I was at the local dog park (near Orlando) I came across a yellow with black stripes snake. It looked to be between 3.5-4 feet long and did not appear at first glance (that was all I gave it out of fear) to be shiny. I was about 3 feet from it and didn't know it until my dog almost stepped on it. She obviously didn't see it either. The snake seemed a pit peeved about the whole thing but it decided not to attack and to slowly slither towards ME to get away from my dog. Needless to say, I took off in a different direction real quick and hollered for my dog to follow. I am not like you or others on this site. I am not a fan of snakes and am extremely afraid of them. Although, I don't mind the black racers that seem to have taken up permanent residence in MY back yard and they love to procreate often (or so it seems). I have seen a lot less field rats since the racers moved in and that makes me very happy. Anyway, can you help me figure out what this snake was? I have spent hours and hours online tonight trying to find it and just can't seem to find anything that looks like it. I am guessing that it is not dangerous to me or my dogs??? I am scared to take my dogs back through those woods that they so dearly love. As soon as I told them, "No more woods until the snakes are gone again," they "told" me to find it if it was dangerous or not and if it isn't that they want to go back again. So that is mostly why I am asking you for your help. We all love the walks but I am afraid of the snakes. Please help me feel safer about going back. Thanks in advance for your help.

Sammy, Snakes seem to go wherever they choose. Given a choice, they'll stay in taller grass or undergrowth as opposed to shorter grass. However, they sure aren't shy about crossing bare ground or roadways or gravel driveways or anything. I see snakes everywhere here, but it varies a bit depending on the snakes. At our place (and the same may not be true everywhere), copperheads like to stay in the woods or just on the edge where the grassy open areas meet the wooded areas. They blend in very well with autumn leaves on the ground, mulch and shadows in dappled shade areas. The diamondback rattlesnakes here stay more along the creek banks and often are seen lying on the rocks. I usually only see Timber Rattlers in the woods, or in the shade of our pecan tree. Occasionally we see them crossing the road from our woodland to the pasture across the road. I've only had one right close to the house in the front yard once, and it was in the shade of the pecan tree. Water moccasins are more often in the big ponds (now dry) or the creeks, and in the smaller ponds we tend to just see some sort of harmless brown water snake. The non-venomous racers favor the shadey edges where woodland meets grassland, but they do like to come into the garden (as do the copperheads and rattlesnakes). The rough green snakes often perch in our tall shrubs and trees. I actually like them...I think they are pretty, and I DO NOT like snakes. I have made it a habit to ALWAYS look at the ground ahead of me/around me as we walk because we have tons of venomous snakes. I never pick up ANYTHING that is lying flat on the ground without using a garden tool to lift it up first to ensure a snake isn't under it. I don't stick my hands under mulch and I watch for snakes in plants (yes, they'll climb up into tall vigorous tomato or okra plants) when I pick tomatoes, peppers, okra, etc. I also don't stir my compost or turn it over between March and November when snakes are active here. Y'all may not have to worry about snakes as much as we do, but we are snake central here. Twice since we bought this property, an individual has been bitten by a copperhead on the property right next door to us and having seen what that was like...a very hard recovery....I don't ever want to experience it first-hand. Suzie, I love Possum Kingdom Lake, but it sure does have some really rugged areas around it. My heart sure does go out to this family. I cannot imagine the pain and grief they are feeling. And, you know, no matter how very, very careful you are, things happen. Dawn