Snake trap / catcher

[ron173]

G'Day all,

I have a fair few brown snakes on my property, and also have a 4yr old, which is a worry to me when she is outside.

I'd like to try and sensibly, safely, and without harming them, somehow catch / trap them and relocate them in the bush.

I am just looking to make something myself to do this.

Can anyone help with a good design?

Rgds

Ron

 

[RCW74]

Maybe it's best for all involved to call in a professional snake catcher - why run the risk of a potentially dangerous accident?

 

[Brettix]

I have seen long skinny tube traps used.
Also seen a doco and the guy tied string to a rat and tied it up to a peg in the ground.
Then he placed a hide over the top,next morning the snake had eaten the rat and was under the hide.
He then caught the snake and just cut the string off at its mouth and the snake will crap it out.
Don't think its the best method although you can try it :lol:

 

[moosenoose]

Yeah it's only $200 smackers to be forking out every single time a person wants to get one moved :? No wonder the vast majority of people want to grab a shovel when there is the potential to be dishing out $600+ a week. Also, when are the councils etc going to get serious about protecting these creatures and residents and start some sort of financial assistance to help people trying to do the right thing, like ron173 is, and cover some/all of these costs.

Brown snakes are probably the worst species for you to try and move to be honest. Perhaps someone on here can give some advice to help. I don't wish to be responsible for giving the wrong advice that may lead to a potentially fatal accident. Perhaps the best advice I can give is contact someone running a handling course and do one, or find a competent local keeper to give you some tips. One way or another you’ll need to get yourself familiar with what you might be in for. On a hot day you’ll have your hands full with one of these critters! Good luck.

 

[redbellybite]

G'Day all,

I have a fair few brown snakes on my property, and also have a 4yr old, which is a worry to me when she is outside.

I'd like to try and sensibly, safely, and without harming them, somehow catch / trap them and relocate them in the bush.

I am just looking to make something myself to do this.

Can anyone help with a good design?

Rgds

Ron

Firstly where are you at RON?
secondly can understand your fear for your daughter ...when she is outside is she usually on her own?
best to check her play area before she ventures there ,especially sandpits and cubby houses...
any gardens around the house that either has rocks or mulch or shrubs that touch the garden bed floor ,are good hidey spots for snake's
,so if you trim the plants ,so you get a good visual underneath them ,with rocks pack in firmly so no gaps ,and mulch ..if you stop using that and go for that jelly water holding stuff (dont know the name) that way, still being water friendly, but snakes wont hide in the stuff..
if its possible to take away any water containers near the house ..if you have dogs or cats ..and can keep water containers up on a verandah .. I realise on properties there are other water sources like dams and tanks etc but the harder you make it for water the better the chances of them going away to seek it else where..
snakes like to hide in pump houses,so if you have one becareful checking your pump. never lift up with a shovel and then peek underneath ,you might get the shock of your life !!always pull things back towards you ,like tin ,pump houses etc ,that way if you do have a snake underneath ,you have protection from what you have resting against you ,or you get to see before it fully knows whats going on ..always stand very still if this happens ...hope the snake will move on and then you move ..if not gently let go of what you have pulled towards you and watch as you take a step back ...then keep stepping back till you know your in the clear ...

snakes in yards can be moved on with a garden hose ..just do a direct spray at the head and keep doing this as the snake moves on ..
you live in bushland on a property ,your encounters will be more often then a city dweller
educate yourself and your daughter ,teach her to stand still if she see's a snake and yell for daddy or mummy to come and help her .
dogs need to be tied up if a snake is near by ,as the outcome is either bad for both animals or snake is usually mutilated .
and if you are able to get a hold of a snake catcher in your region then have their number on first hand ...saves alot of trying to get it yourself ,and risk being bitten ..
DO NOT TRY AND CATCH AND RELOCATE EASTERN BROWNS YOURSELF ..YOU ARE PLAYING RUSSIAN ROULETTE!

 

[redbellybite]

$200? moosey the dearest I charge is $80.00 and thats either for commercial dwellings where I have to encounter the public as well as the snake ...or they have rang me up after 8.30pm ...

 

[moosenoose]

Well, I think there are some over this way that hit you up $150 just to come out, snake or no snake. Then there are their relocation costs factored over that. It's nice to see someone like yourself RBB in making a relocation an affordable, safer option. I can't understand the huge prices some people want to charge at times.

 

[redbellybite]

I also do payment plan ,realising some may not have the money up front ...so they are given the option of paying me later ...BUT as I say to them ,I know all the relocators for this area ...we talk to each other and we charge the same ..so if you dont pay then next time you will be charged double ..one to pay me or the other catcher and one to pay the old debt ...have never had a person not pay yet .
Also in genuine pension callouts (not I am a pensioner but living like a king ..they get full charge,I make this call when I get to see their living arrangements)
I give these genuine people half price ..so $25...a callout .

 

[ron173]

G'Day again,

thanks for replies, I'm in Northern NSW.

I have tried to make the place as snake proof as i can by removing water sources, except a small natural pond which i cant, but i cleared all bush from around it. Only moved here about 6 weeks ago.

I have cut all branches and foilage up off ground level in my house area.

However this isnt much of a deterrent, my neighbour closest in next block a few acres away had an encounter with a brown which she says was 1.5mtrs long and as thick as a coke can!! luckily no one was bitten.

I have 2 german shepherds which patrol the place, I'm kinda hoping that their scent will keep them away.

I try to supervise my daughter but its not easy to watch all time and she is very enquisitive.

Not sure if she is making it up but she keeps saying she saw a snake with a red tummy!!

Guess I prob worry too much but you cant protect your kids enough.

I keep snake bite bandages handy but I am 20km out of town if I ever had to rush in.

Thanks again

Ron

 

[redbellybite]

Ron ...she may have seen a red bellied black snake ...
Like I said, you live in the bush ...you get snakes
sounds like you have done alot of the right thing in regards to keeping your place as snake free as possible ..
DONT PANIC ...plenty of us parents that have bought up children in the bush lifestyle ,me being a mum of 4, and in all those years, a few times yes, my kids did see snakes, but never once did they get bitten ...always taught them to stand still and yell if they saw a snake ...they are now young adults with my youngest being 17...
as far as pets go ...have lost a dog and my daughter lost a cat that was in our shed, to brown snakes..
pets will act on instinct and be curious ...my old dog was 15 years old when she got tagged, (I would say she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time as she was wary as with snakes,) ..and died
the cat use to be locked in a big shed during the day ,while my daughter went to school ..unfortunantly the brown snake was in the shed this particular day ...hubby found the cat ,was on deaths door, and later on I found the snake very big fella ,so snake lived another day but my little girls cat didnt .....

Keep up with maintaining your place ,this will help alot ..especially as you will see the snake/snakes
I have been to places where its like looking for a needle in a haystack ..
You should be able to get a catcher to come to your place ..if your more specific in the area where you live ,someone on here may live near by and let you know of a catcher ...
FIRST AID is the key ...make sure you fully know how to treat someone for a snake bite
and ring an ambulance not drive yourself or the patient ..you would be better off keeping calm or keeping that person calm and waiting till the ambo's come ...cause you never know the reaction you or that person may have from the bite ..
With your dogs ,be vigilant ,make sure if you do notice a change in your dog/s that is not the norm,
to seek medical help ,any form of respiratory problem ,constant licking or wiping or eyes have a drunk look ..is a good sign that they may have been bitten .

 

[RCW74]

Can't comment on the price of a removal, but its probably less than the cost of a hospital admission for snake bite, and definately less than a casket!

 

[Jackrabbit]

On the ABC the other night on their invetors show a guy had come up with a snake trap that doesn't harm them. It was about $300.

Try to find that episode on the net.

Not sure if it is actually available yet though it might be.

 

[snakehunter1]

I live on North Coast, I'd do it for nothing. Especially to protect the daughter as well as the outcome of a dead snake or snakes. I used to do a lot of snake relocating around Sydney - Ive never charged anyone for it. Never even entered my mind.

 

[redbellybite]

I live on North Coast, I'd do it for nothing. Especially to protect the daughter as well as the outcome of a dead snake or snakes. I used to do a lot of snake relocating around Sydney - Ive never charged anyone for it. Never even entered my mind.

Are you an actual snake catcher ?...
please realise there is more to it then just catching a snake and dumping it else where ...
this is why it is best to actually get someone with experience and qualification to do it ...its not as ABC as some people like to think ,you actually have to take into account where you are to release it and in QLD you have to do a report of it where you got it from and where it was released ..this return of op is then sent back to the EPA and kept on record ...ALL SNAKES EVEN DEAD ONES ARE PROTECTED ...so there is a system that complys with this .

 

[redbellybite]

[video=youtube;brEyVyqBaCM]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brEyVyqBaCM[/video]

otherwise you end up with morons like this !!!!

 

[Firepac]

I only charge $30 to cover the cost of fuel and some of my time. Never ceases to amaze me how many people expect it to be a free service, whilst others would willingly pay $100 !!

 

[redbellybite]

I only charge $30 to cover the cost of fuel and some of my time. Never ceases to amaze me how many people expect it to be a free service, whilst others would willingly pay $100 !!

Agreed Firepac .....we are providing a service that they need at the time ..and in most cases it is for a simple case of being uncomfortable having a snake in the yard ..not a life threatning one where they are bailed up against a wall and cant move senario...
we get calls in the middle of the night ...and I myself can drive over 100kms round trip for one call out ....fuel isnt free ,wear and tear on my car isnt free ...STOP YA WHINING ...Iam sure you people that have this attitude it should be free ...wouldnt offer to do your job for nothing now ....in QLD ,most of us opperate on our own ,not involved with a wildlife group ...and get no donations or gov rebates ...it is all from our own pockets and I am yet to find a money tree .

 

[beatlloydy]

I agree Redbelly..doesnt sound like much and you guys have to make a living and at least pay for costs ($30 wouldnt even pay for petrol/wear and tear)..probably the ones whingeing are the overpriced tradies..I got slugged $275 to fix a stuck sliding door and the bloke was coming to my suburb for another call..the job took 30 mins.

So $80 for a snake removal to me sounds pretty good...hope I dont have to use one tho cos in Sydney they would probably charge $200. I guess it all depends on where you live.

 

[Tim93]

That fella in the vid has interesting tactics:shock:
Asking to get bitten in my opinion, not to nice on the snake either!

Where are you in Northern NSW?
We are just north of coffs harbour, if you are close by dad might come out and catch and release them for you free of charge (he's in wires, licenced snake catcher)
He has never asked for money but some people will make a donation to wires.

TIM.

 

[redbellybite]

I agree Redbelly..doesnt sound like much and you guys have to make a living and at least pay for costs ($30 wouldnt even pay for petrol/wear and tear)..probably the ones whingeing are the overpriced tradies..I got slugged $275 to fix a stuck sliding door and the bloke was coming to my suburb for another call..the job took 30 mins.

So $80 for a snake removal to me sounds pretty good...hope I dont have to use one tho cos in Sydney they would probably charge $200. I guess it all depends on where you live.

my callout standard fee is $50.00 ...$25.00 old age pen ...$80.00 for commercial or after 8.30pm at night (I have had calls at 1am ..for a carpet on a verandah and a bts in a bird cage ..)...I personally dont think I charge too much.