# how do you kill snakes?



## wokofshame

hey anybody ever eaten rattlesnake, copperheads etc, how do you kill them? 

i knew a guy who'd pin their head w/ a stick, i'm really not a fan of getting that close to copperheads but maybe my fear is misplaced? 

are they likely to slinkie towards you and bite your ankle, or will they just bite the stick/try to, or slither off? do they usually not associate you with the stick and strike at you?


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## IBRRHOBO

Got bit in Abilene, TX, by a rattler and it ain't NO punk! Lost a good part of my muscle over it! Sick for a month from the anti-venom and only got it 'cause my boss shot the fucker! Copperheads are worse as the're FAR more agressive than the rattler!

Anywayz, they have a rattlesnake round-up in TX. Sharks could probably tell u a lot more about it as she's down there.

I will tell u this: don't fuck w/'em unless u have to! And the babies are the worst as they'll kill u DEAD as they don't control the amount of venom. Also, down here in the south we have cotton mouths. Fuckers will get big as a forearm and 2 - 3 foot long. Curl up in trees down in the swamps and shit! 

As to the ankle, remember this: a snake can strike in any direction INCLUDING up about the length of itself.

Good eating, though! And don't confuse a black snake w/a cottonmouth. Black's are good snakes. I go and catch 4 or 5 every spring to throw in my garden as they eat the other snakes!


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## compass

I don't have any experience with this, but according to people I've talked to and videos I've seen, you pin the head down with a stick, grab it close to the head, where it can't turn around and bite you, then cut it's head off.

It can always strike, but it's most dangerous when coiled, when it can strike the farthest.


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## Angela

Best to just leave the snakes alone. People that intentionally hunt them though usually wear a special type of high boots to lower the chances of getting bitten. I know that they sell these at places in Arizona but I don't know where else they might be found.


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## IBRRHOBO

Yup, they're called gatorz out here. U can use old tires w/straps to secure them from ur ankle up to the knee. Best to buy the real ones. They'll run u about $80. Don't buy the generic, made in China, shit.


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## Ravie

well i started killing diamond back rattlers when i was about 8 years old because i grew up in the middle of fucking no where. we allways just chopped their head off with a shovel or dropped a big ass rock on em. the to eat them you cut the head off, cut from the throat to the tail(belly), clean it, and cook it.


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## dirtyfacedan

I got bit by a bull snake on the wrist in the Okanagan a few years ago. I was a fool and grabbed it by the tail, and bashed it's head in before i even know what kind of snake it was. Not the best way to do it as they will just bite more, however Bull snakes just bite and are not poisonous, and eat rattlers.


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## wokofshame

didn't you have to kill a dog when it came at ya dan? you need to remove that animal agression magnet  
thanks ravie you are a fucking savage i am sorry i misssed redding, shit i missed canland too dan


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## KEVIlgeNius

no snake is poisonous, only venomous. The difference is that you can eat ANY snake (as long as you don't eat the venom sack). Rattlers have a striking distance of half their body length, which with the exception of the western diamond back, is usually only about 1.5 feet. First get to know the snakes in your area. Rattlesnake bites are actually more deadly with an antivenom then without, most hospitals will only keep you over night and watch the wound. So I guess all you need to do is get a long heavy stick and smash its face or throw rocks at it. The aboriginals, who live in one of the most highly populated region for venomous snakes, tenderize the snake first by wacking it on a log for an extended period of time. More rocks = better. when eating you should remember that snakes have a pair of rib bones for every scale along their belly, hard to eat.


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## yhcrana

Make sure the stick is of good size and strength, just keep hitting it until it stops moving. Or you can use the stick to pin it's head down, but make sure you keep the pressure on before you grab it, they wriggle out if you're not careful. You can stand on the head and cut where ever, I wouldn't mess with the head though, I'm pretty sure they work like wasps, they can get you even if they're dead, or freshly dead.


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## bobNkamille

Ravie said:


> well i started killing diamond back rattlers when i was about 8 years old because i grew up in the middle of fucking no where. we allways just chopped their head off with a shovel or dropped a big ass rock on em. the to eat them you cut the head off, cut from the throat to the tail(belly), clean it, and cook it.



thats how we use to kill them too with a shovel any ways my aim sucks so i think i would miss with a rock haha


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## KEVIlgeNius

Garter Snakes - watch out for the musk... tastes fucking disgusting


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## wartomods

beat them with a stick


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## Geoff

when we used to see them we would either fetch a shovel or a machete. i don't kill them anymore though.


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## seke

I couldn't kill a snake unless A) it was my life or its life, or B) I was starving to death, which is kinda like choice A.


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## devenheartbreak

i figured that you'd just beat it to death with a stick and eat it raw murt. :] 
hah just kidding.


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## tallhorseman

Snakes want to avoid you 10 times as much as you want to avoid them. The biggest danger from them is having one crawl up at night and mistake you for a big, warm rock. Then when you roll over they think they're being attacked a bite you in your sleep. That's why so many people sleep in hammocks when they camp. If you can see them they're practically helpless. 

My opinion is that the most dangerous animal alive...

Is a greedy man.


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## crampicide

agreeing with what has been said- learn about the snakes in the area, find out the areas they are most likely to be in at certain times of the day and just stay away. snakes deserve mad respect, i think the more you learn and respect them the better chance you have if you come to face to face with them, fear makes us do stupid shit sometimes and understanding their nature gives you a better chance of avoiding confrontation. ha

living in the desert, ive found really rocky areas and tall grass is usually preferred areas for diamond backs/rattlers. ive never been bitten, but ive almost stepped on them and have seen them too close for comfort, they didnt seem to pay any mind, exept the one about i stepped on, i hauled ass when i heard its rattle (lucky). 

if you must kill them, make sure if youre in the area- have something heavy and about as long as the snake on hand and pay attention! (;

as far as eating them..ive only seen my father eat them, he picks off desirable meat and smokes it. apparently, its good.


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## stove

As with everyone's advice, leave them the fuck alone.

That being said, the best/safest/easiest way to kill them is a .410 or .22 with birdshot and a wide dispersion barrel. Don't bother with a .12 gauge, it's overkill.


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## smellsea

let them bite on you untill they eat themselves to death.


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## finn

Put them on a plane with Samuel Jackson!


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## Wolfeyes

Snakes are the main reason I carry a 12" machete when I'm going wilderness. That and walking stick about my height (5'3" - 5'6" depending on what liquor store I'm walking out of), with a small V on the top. Pin the head to the ground and chop it off. Generally I'll dig a hole a few feet away and bury the head.

I don't kill non-venomous snakes, and even then, I only bump off rattlers over 4' long, unless I need food, then I'll go as small as three. Any smaller than that it's not worth the effort. Cottonmouths are a different story. I avoid them whenever I can. If I do end up having to kill one, I use it as bait, cause those things are fucking inedible. Maybe if it's eat or die, but only then.


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## Wolfeyes

Don't get me wrong, I don't go out LOOKING for them, unless I've got no other food, in which case I'm looking for anything edible. 9 times out of 10 I let them slither off.


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## Franny

I would really advise not fucking with snakes unless you HAVE to. Of course.

But as I currently live right on a canal there are water moccassins (cotton mouths) that stick around in my back yard sometimes. Since I have outdoor cats I use a hoe with a long handle and whack their heads off.

And no, I don't eat them.


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## Riverbrooks

careful with V tiped sticks to try and trap the head, if the ground is solid or the V is too long, the snake might have space to back out of it as you reach for the head. a stick like the end of a canoe paddle, or if you can picture a hammerhead shark, with just a bit of a curve in it is good, but damn dude.. a rattler??? bad ass!


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## Rasmus

I just carry a stick with me when I'm on the trail, about 3' in length, and wack 'em on the back before they get away. This stops them long enough to wack em' another time or two, till they calm down. They I throw it half-dead into a baggy and do the final kill right before I eat. Keeps 'em fresher. Then I cut off the head about 1/2 " down the neck, skin it, gut it, wash up, wrap the snake around my hunting knife, and barbecue it till it's golden brown. Eat it up bones & all. Super tasty. (see pics)


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## wartomods

thats tiny snake


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## Pheonix

I use a long handle spade shovel and try to behead them with one downward motion. if that doesn't work they get pissed and coil up in a defensive position. they will try to bite the shovel (they think the shovel is attacking them not the person at the end of the shovel) if they coil up then I hit them flat on the top of the head with the bottom of the shovel and that usually stuns them enough for me to try to behead them again. another way to kill a snake is with a figure 4 deadfall trap but it wont target just the snake but it will kill any critter that takes the bait


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## fredbrown7

do ehatch gotta do


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## Murf

Obviously avoid snakes , but if it comes down to it either it be hunger or protection if you have a spade or shovle , go for the head [head neck whatever] and hold it intill it stops moving and your sure its dead. That and apply rule two: the double tap, just to be safe. Personally to me Snakes are like zombies you gotta get rid of the head , dont eat them [in case its poison] , and im not messin with em.


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## Pheonix

you can eat the venomous one as long as you don't eat the venom sacs that are located on each side of the head below and behind the eyes. remove and discard the head and the rest is good eating.


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## Dromomania

Mmm... Snake sum good meat. As a kid I used to use a piece of fishing rod 3' long. Wack'm good once and pin them down at the neck while you step on the head, then pick him up by the neck not so far back that he could bite you when you pick'm up. Cut off head, skin then cook. 
Umm... ok, for those of you not familiar with snakes; with there head cut off they can and prob will move around.
So if your bag of decapitated snakes bust open and jump around on the seat next to you remember, there heads are cut off and you don't need to slide to a halt on the highway and jump outa the truck screaming bloody murder.


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## soymilkshakes

With an ax!

Even with the head clean off, rattlesnakes make a lot of reflexive movements for a decent amount of time after you get 'em. I've heard this can include posthumous biting, so wait a while before slicing the thing up.


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## Scotty

lol.. you throw rocks at their head of course. simplest and safest. them shits is good and easy to cook too.


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## foak

you dont!


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## Diagaro

I faced off with a black racer in North Carolina, he was not gonna let me go so I picked up a stone from the rail trestle and with one deft throw bashed its fuckin head in - mid air too his head was raised up about a foot and a half I hit him square in the head mid air and the rock followed through the smash it against the trestle. Really didn't want to kill it but It was aggressive towards me, after my roaddog tomfool rounded the bend and saw my kill he told me that I was lucky and that they are aggressive and poisonous, that they will chase you, witch is what it did the fucker came at me every evasive move I made.


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## katbastard

View attachment 24182
after i cut the head of the diamond back rattle snake off with a shovel, which out for the head, the snake will still bite you after we is beheaded! i took a sharp knife, or box cutter and cut up the belly, careful not to pop the guts open.
View attachment 24183
after you have the belly cut all the way down, use your thumb nail to pry the skin from the meat untill only the skin along the spine is attached, at this point you can pull the skin off the spine like some wet crusty socks off of your feet
View attachment 24184
put the skin aside, and focus on the meat and guts, be slow and careful pull the gut sacks out using your finger nail to help the guts along
View attachment 24185
now your ready to eat! roll the skin up for after you grub...
View attachment 24186
i put the snake on a stick over the fire, cooked it until the meat was white like chicken and ate it off the bone kinda like a bony fish, the meat was not was pretty good. though i am a fat kid

on the skin, i covered it in salt for a few days, then stretched out the skin washed off the salt and use some kind of cheap lotion on the inside of the skin. not really the right way but it worked.

most snakes will not harm you inless your an idiot, keep away from them and they will not bite. but kill them and eat them by all means, but dont just kill them because your a chicken shit. have fun


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## wokofshame

awesome! love it


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## acrata4ever

rattele snake rattles improve the sound of stringed instruments


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## Monterey

The rule is:
red touches yellow, kill the fellow.
Red touches black, friend of jack.

Venomous snakes usually have trapezoid shaped heads, to hold the venom glands. Non poisonous snakes generally have rounder heads.

With the above rhyme, it is talking about how the colors touch on their skin. If red touches yellow, it is highly poisonous and kill it or get away. Red not touching yellow but touching black is usually just a non-poisonous king snake. Be careful, no amount of fashion is worth getting inexperienced into a situation where you have a greater than half chance of dying.

Never move suddenly around a snake even if you are surprised. You life will depend on your ability to get a grip on the spot and stay cool.

- Monterey


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## RSTY802510

i used to go fishing at this spot off of the Appalachian trail. we called it the megaden because every step you took you would see another snake. anyway we would pin there neck right below the head with a stick. and put the knife to it then hit the flat part of the knife with a rock so it cuts right through. and bury the head. then clean it, flatten the skin on a rock scrape it and salt it then let it dry. sometimes the skins kinda curls up if you dont do it right. and cook it asap or youll probably get sick. it taste like shit anyways so i wouldent waste my time eating it.


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## AlwaysLost

yhcrana said:


> Make sure the stick is of good size and strength, just keep hitting it until it stops moving. Or you can use the stick to pin it's head down, but make sure you keep the pressure on before you grab it, they wriggle out if you're not careful. You can stand on the head and cut where ever, I wouldn't mess with the head though, I'm pretty sure they work like wasps, they can get you even if they're dead, or freshly dead.



Yes its best to buryor burn the heads I've had headless snakes wiggle in the fire as we cooked them. Incredible reflexes. I think after an hour after death they finally rigor mortis. But I wouldn't mess with the head.


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## AlwaysLost

Monterey said:


> The rule is:
> red touches yellow, kill the fellow.
> Red touches black, friend of jack.
> 
> Venomous snakes usually have trapezoid shaped heads, to hold the venom glands. Non poisonous snakes generally have rounder heads.
> 
> With the above rhyme, it is talking about how the colors touch on their skin. If red touches yellow, it is highly poisonous and kill it or get away. Red not touching yellow but touching black is usually just a non-poisonous king snake. Be careful, no amount of fashion is worth getting inexperienced into a situation where you have a greater than half chance of dying.
> 
> Never move suddenly around a snake even if you are surprised. You life will depend on your ability to get a grip on the spot and stay cool.
> 
> - Monterey



Coral snakes will kill, you but they have to latch on to softer tissue for awhile. They don't have fangs and are scaredy cats. They cant inject venom in a couple seconds like a viper can . Its usual victims are intoxicated and stupid.


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